Six area colleges earn nods for nation’s best, top business programs

Miami University and the University of Cincinnati once again ranked highly on U.S. News & World Report’s list of top colleges.

Miami came in at no. 78, up one spot from last year, and UC came in at no. 133, up two spots from last year.

The study is based on things like retention, graduation rate and how that graduation rate meets U.S. News’ own predictions for the school. The next greatest factor are the opinions of college presidents and provosts, as well as high school guidance counselors. It also looks at faculty resources, class size, faculty pay, the percentage of faculty with the highest degrees in their fields, student performance, financial resources and alumni giving.

Miami received an overall score of 55/100, with high marks in retention (91 percent) and graduation rate (78 percent). UC received an overall score of 43/100, with a retention rate of 87 percent and a 67 percent graduation rate.

Three other area schools also received recognition from U.S. News:  

• Xavier ranked no. 5 among regional universities in the Midwest
• Mount St. Joseph University ranked no. 87 in the Midwest
• NKU ranked no. 73 among Southern regional universities
• Thomas More College ranked no. 80 in the South
• Miami’s Farmer School of Business ranked no. 45
• UC’s Lindner School of Business ranked no. 91
• Xavier’s Williams School of Business ranked no. 128

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