For the fifth year in a row, the Forbes.com online news magazine has recognized the University of Mary Washington as one of the nation’s top universities.
In the annual list of “America’s Best Colleges,” UMW ranks 66th out of 100 institutions that Forbes deems “The 100 Best Buy Colleges.” Overall, UMW ranks 243rd out of the 650 undergraduate institutions that the magazine considers the nation’s best. UMW rose more than 45 spots from last year’s overall ranking of 291.
The list is compiled in conjunction with the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP), which rates the undergraduate institutions based on the quality of the education provided and how much their students achieve. The CCAP ranks only the top 15 percent of the nation’s more than 4,000 colleges and universities.
According to Forbes.com, the list is based on the following five categories: post graduate success, which evaluates alumni pay and prominence; student satisfaction, which includes professor evaluations and first-year retention rates; debt, which penalizes schools for high student debt loads and default rates; four year graduation rate; and competitive awards, which rewards schools whose students win prestigious scholarships.
The full list is available at http://www.forbes.com/top-colleges/.
