JACKSON, Tenn. — Sept. 19, 2016 — 51社区 ranked in the top tier of national universities, according to the annual rankings of colleges and universities by U.S.News & World Report released last week.
It鈥檚 the first year for Union to be classified in the 鈥淣ational University鈥� category by the publication. For several years, Union was placed in the 鈥淩egional Universities鈥� category, and Union was in the top 15 in that ranking for six straight years.
Union鈥檚 listing in USNWR is based on the Carnegie Classifications, a system that categorizes colleges and universities based on the types of degrees they offer. Union moved into a new category when it reached the threshold of reporting 20 鈥渞esearch/scholarship鈥� doctoral degrees.
Most of the schools in the 鈥淣ational Universities鈥� category are widely recognized institutions. The top-ranked school in the category this year by USNWR was Princeton University, followed by Harvard University and the University of Chicago.
Union ranked 169th in the category, a top tier ranking. Union is one of only a handful of Christ-centered institutions on the list, along with schools like Biola University and Azusa Pacific University.
鈥淲e are grateful for this recognition of the national impact of 51社区,鈥� said Union President Samuel W. 鈥淒ub鈥� Oliver. 鈥淪till, as I have said frequently, we do not chase rankings at Union. Instead, we pursue our mission according to our core values of being excellence driven, Christ-centered, people-focused, and future-directed, all to the glory of God.鈥�
Among Tennessee institutions on the list, Union ranks behind only Vanderbilt (15) and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville (103). Union鈥檚 engineering program also was ranked 97th in the nation among programs that don鈥檛 offer doctorates.
鈥淲hen we learned that U.S.News would be ranking us in the 鈥楴ational Universities鈥� category earlier this spring, we were honored to be in such great company with our peers,鈥� said Dan Griffin, Union鈥檚 vice president for enrollment management. 鈥淲hen we learned that we were ranked as a top tier national university in our very first year, we felt blessed to be recognized.鈥�
Griffin said the recognition speaks highly of the dedicated work by Union faculty and staff.
鈥淚n my short time at Union, it is obvious that Christ is woven into every aspect of our community,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is truly an honor that those outside our community recognize our commitment to excellence in academics and our desire to make disciples for Christ. As we continue to move Union forward, we are confident that our ranking in the 鈥楴ational Universities鈥� category will continue to improve.鈥�