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NEW YORK, January 8, 2009 / PRNewswire / - The Princeton Review, one of America's most widely-known education services and test-prep companies, has teamed up with USA TODAY, the nation's most widely-read newspaper, to present The Princeton's Review's 100 "Best Value Colleges for 2009."
The "Best Value" colleges list, reported in today's USA TODAY and on PrincetonReview.com/bestvaluecolleges and BestValueColleges.usatoday.com features 50 public and 50 private colleges and universities. In each category, ten schools are named as the top ranking "Best Value" colleges: University of Virginia (Charlottesville) is the #1 "Best Value Public College" and Swarthmore College (Swarthmore PA) is the #1 "Best Value Private College." (The two top 10 lists follow.)
The Princeton Review selected these institutions as its "best value" choices for 2009 based on its surveys of administrators and students at more than 650 public and private colleges and universities. The selection criteria covered more than 30 factors in three areas: academics, costs of attendance, and financial aid, using the most recently reported data from each institution for its 2007-08 academic year.
Said Robert Franek, Princeton Review VP-Publisher, "We have always believed finding the 'best fit' college should be the foremost goal for student applicants and their families. But the economic crisis and financial downturn have presented sobering challenges both to families struggling to afford college and to higher education institutions struggling to maintain their programs in the face of budget and funding shortfalls. We are pleased to partner with USA TODAY to present these schools for all they are doing to provide outstanding academics at a relatively low cost of attendance and/or generous financial aid."
The Princeton Review "Top 10 Best Value Private Colleges for 2009" are:
1. Swarthmore College (Swarthmore PA)
2. Harvard College (Cambridge MA)
3. Princeton University (Princeton NJ)
4. Rice University (Houston TX)
5. Yale University (New Haven CT)
6. Williams College (Williamstown MA)
7. Amherst College (Amherst, MA)
8. California Institute of Technology (Pasadena CA)
9. Pomona College (Claremont CA)
10. Stanford University (Stanford CA)
The "Top 10 Best Value Public Colleges for 2009" are:
1. University of Virginia (Charlottesville VA)
2. New College of Florida (Sarasota FL)
3. College of William & Mary (Williamsburg VA)
4. State University of New York at Binghamton (Binghamton NY)
5. Florida State University (Tallahassee FL)
6. North Carolina State University (Raleigh NC)
7. Univ. of California - San Diego
8. City University of New York - Hunter College (New York NY)
9. Univ. of Georgia (Athens GA)
10. The College of New Jersey (Ewing NJ)
Visitors to The Princeton Review's and USA TODAY's websites can access the complete lists of the 50 private and 50 public "best value colleges." Only the top 10 schools on each list are ranked: the remaining 40 are alphabetically listed. USA TODAY's website, (BestValueColleges.usatoday.com) features a database that allows users to view in-depth details about the schools. By clicking on an interactive map, visitors can explore criteria including cost of attendance and financial aid data, enrollment size, and The Princeton Review's analysis of why each school was chosen as a "Best Value" college.
The Princeton Review previously reported annual "best value" public and private colleges lists (and top 10 ranking schools in each category) on its website and in its book, America's Best Value Colleges, which was published from 2004 to 2007.
About The Princeton Review:
The Princeton Review is a New York City-based education services company known for its test-prep courses, college and graduate school admission services, books, and education programs. The company is also known for its annual college, business and law school rankings reported on its website and in its books in several categories based on surveys it conducts of higher education institutions and of students attending the schools. The Princeton Review is not affiliated with Princeton University or ETS.
About USA TODAY:
USA TODAY is the nation's top-selling newspaper. It is published via satellite at 34 locations in the USA and at four sites abroad. With a total average daily circulation of 2.3 million, USA TODAY is available worldwide. USA TODAY is published by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI). The USA TODAY brand also includes: USATODAY.com, an award-winning news and information Web site that is updated 24 hours per day; USA TODAY Sports Weekly, a magazine for enthusiasts of college and professional football and baseball; USA TODAY Mobile, offering up-to-the minute news and information on a variety of mobile platforms and devices; and USA TODAY LIVE, the television arm of the USA TODAY brand that brings the spirit and quality of the newspaper to television.
SOURCE: The Princeton Review
Contacts:
The Princeton Review
Jeanne Krier
Publicist
(212) 539-1350
Jeanne@jeannekrier.com
Harriet Brand
Public Relations Director
(212) 874-9282 ext 1091
HarrietB@review.com
USA TODAY
Heidi Zimmerman
Director/Communications
(703) 854-5304
hzimmerman@usatoday.com
Web sites:
http://www.princetonreview.com/bestvaluecolleges
http://www.BestValueColleges.usatoday.com.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Robert Franek, VP/Publisher, The Princeton Review is available for interviews.
Contact:
Jeanne Krier
Publicist
The Princeton Review
212-539-1350
Jeanne@jeannekrier.com.