Kiplinger's ranks WWU among 100 Best Values

Western Washington University ranks among the top 100 public colleges and universities in the nation that “deliver strong academics at affordable prices,” according to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine.

In its February 2010 issue, Kiplinger’s magazine ranks Western 54th on its list of the 100 Best Values in Public Colleges in the United States for 2009-2010. The magazine ranked Western 56th in 2008-2009.

“Western offers a top-quality education at an affordable cost due to our fine faculty and staff, whose exceptional efforts have created a supportive and collaborative learning environment,” said WWU President Bruce Shepard. “Western unlocks doors to brighter futures, which is even more critically important in the midst of this very difficult economy.”

The rankings are based on data that more than 500 public four-year colleges and universities provided to determine the top 100.

The magazine, which has a circulation of about 800,000, ranked each school after an analysis of academic quality, including SAT scores, admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios and four- and six-year graduation rates.

Each school was then ranked based on cost and financial aid, including factors such as tuition, mandatory fees, room and board, estimated expenses for books, financial aid available and the average debt a student accumulates before graduation.

Two other public universities in the state of Washington also were on the list. The University of Washington ranks 7th and Washington State University 95th. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill tops the list.

Western ranks ahead of a number of major colleges and universities, including: University of Massachusetts, Amherst; the University of Oregon; University of California, Santa Cruz, University of Iowa, University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Utah.

For more information about Kiplinger’s rankings, see http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges/.

Western also has consistently received strong rankings in U.S. News & World Report surveys of colleges and universities in the nation. Western is the highest ranking public, master’s-granting university in the Pacific Northwest, according to U.S. News & World Report college rankings.