January 11, 2006
UW chosen as top 10 value in higher education in US
When a personal finance magazine named the 100 public universities that provide a stellar education at a relatively low cost, the University of Washington made the top 10.
The UW is in the top 10 among schools identified as good values in education by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. With tuition skyrocketing and financial aid dwindling, the magazine has once again identified the top 100 values in public colleges using a rigorous quantitative ranking system. The “Kiplinger 100” finds schools where, according to the magazine, “students can receive a stellar education without graduating with a mountain of debt.”
Selected from a pool of over 500 public four-year colleges and universities, the schools on the Kiplinger list were ranked according to academic quality, cost and financial aid. Kiplinger ranks quality based on standard test score averages, admission rates, freshman, retention, student-to-faculty ratio and graduation rates.
Affordability is measured by tuition, mandatory fees, room and board, and estimated book expenses, as well as the average cost for students with financial need that is covered through grants. The magazine also measures the average debt students accumulate before graduating.
“This may be one of those dubious distinction awards,” said UW President Mark Emmert of the ranking. “While it is good to be recognized for providing a high quality education at a reasonable cost, the ranking also reflects the fact that our tuition is low relative to other schools and that there is room for it to increase, with a proper financial aid model.”
The Top 10: For more information on the ranking methodology, visit http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/rankings.
School
Total In-State Costs
Total Out-of State Costs
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
$12,029
$25,827
University of Florida
$10,284
$24,412
University of Virginia
$14,522
$31,442
College of William and Mary
$15,045
$30,315
New College of Florida
$10,628
$26,386
University of Georgia
$11,804
$24,024
SUNY at Geneseo
$13,710
$19,970
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
$16.796
$30,882
Binghamton University (SUNY)
$14,740
$21,000
University of Washington
$13,356
$27.653
While most of the Kiplinger 100 public colleges have 15,000 students or more, small public schools, such as SUNY at Geneseo, rival private liberal arts colleges — proving that students do not have to sacrifice an intimate setting for reasonable prices.
