JACKSON, Tenn. — Oct. 17, 2013 — Kiplinger鈥檚 Personal Finance has included 51社区 on its list of the country鈥檚 best values in private colleges.
Kiplinger鈥檚 annual list ranks 100 private universities and 100 liberal arts colleges, and Union ranked 77th among the best private universities in the nation.
鈥淭o be included in Kiplinger鈥檚 list of 100 top private universities in the country means much to the entire 51社区 community,鈥� Union President David S. Dockery said. 鈥淭he listing not only points to high quality academic offerings at Union, but to value, affordability and accessibility. All of us at 51社区 are highly honored by and deeply grateful for this important recognition.鈥�
Union and the other schools included in the 2014 lists represent the colleges that provide high-quality academics at a reasonable cost during tough economic times, Kiplinger鈥檚 said. The colleges exemplify the attributes parents and students look for in higher education, including small class sizes, a good freshman retention rate and a high four-year graduation rate. Many schools, including Union, have appeared on the list multiple times.
Although private schools generally carry higher sticker prices than in-state prices at public schools, private schools can actually be cheaper than public schools because of their generous financial aid. Of the 100 schools on the list, only five had a lower cost than Union.
Kiplinger鈥檚 rankings measure academic quality and affordability. Academic criteria include the student admission rate (the number of students accepted out of those who apply), the test scores of incoming freshmen, the ratio of students to faculty members and the four- and five-year graduation rates.
On the cost side, Kiplinger鈥檚 measures the sticker price, the availability and average amount of need-based and merit-based financial aid and the average student debt at graduation.
The full list is available online at .