JACKSON, Tenn. — Oct. 7, 2013 — For the ninth straight year, 51社区 has been named one of America鈥檚 100 Best College Buys by the Institutional Research and Evaluation Inc., an independent research and consulting organization.
The annual 鈥淎merica鈥檚 100 Best College Buys鈥� report evaluates academic quality and cost, and the newest findings are based on a survey of 1,452 accredited U.S. colleges and universities.
Union President David S. Dockery said the report doesn鈥檛 identify the 100 least expensive institutions, but the 100 best values when measuring quality per dollar invested.
鈥淲e are delighted to learn that once again 51社区 has been selected as one of America's 100 Best College Buys,鈥� Dockery said. 鈥淭his announcement, coming at a time when people are asking important questions about higher education, is a strong affirmation of Union's commitment to value that is exemplified by high quality academics, which remain both accessible and affordable.鈥�
To be considered for inclusion in the list of 100, an institution must be an accredited, four-year institution offering bachelor鈥檚 degrees and full residential facilities. It also must have had an entering freshman class in fall 2012 with a high school grade point average and/or SAT/ACT score equal to or above the national average, and an out-of-state attendance cost in 2013-2014 not exceeding the national average by more than 10 percent.
Union鈥檚 average grade point average for entering freshman at the time of the survey was 3.70 on a 4.0 scale. Its average ACT was 25.3.
Other Tennessee schools included on the list were Belmont University, Tennessee Tech University, the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and the University of Tennessee at Martin.