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The U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges” guide ranks »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË in the top 10 in three categories in its 2021 edition, released today. »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË is ranked No. 9 among the Best Regional Universities in the South, moving up a slot from its 2020 ranking. »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË again is the only Polk County school to be included in the top 10.

The annual college guide from U.S. News & World Report also lists »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË at No. 6 in its Best Undergraduate Teaching in the South category, which recognizes colleges that have a strong commitment to undergraduate teaching. »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË is also ranked as the ninth “Most Innovative” school in the South.

The College is additionally ranked among the top 20 Best Value Universities in the South, which compares academic quality to cost of attendance. And, for the third year, »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË appears in the national Best Undergraduate Business Programs listing.

“»Ê¼Ò»ªÈË is consistently ranked among the most elite colleges and universities, and this year’s multiple top 10 U.S. News & World Report rankings are no exception,” said »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË President Anne Kerr. “This is an important confirmation that »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË is among the best academic institutions in the nation. I am particularly pleased with our No. 6 undergraduate teaching ranking, which is a tribute to our outstanding faculty.”

U.S. News & World Report has been producing college rankings since 1983 and uses academic data surveys and third-party sources to calculate rankings based on school groupings established by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education and determined by each school’s academic mission. Regional universities, offering a wide range of undergraduate degrees and some master’s programs but limited doctoral programs, are ranked against peer-group schools in four geographical regions: North, South, Midwest and West.

»Ê¼Ò»ªÈË is consistently recognized for academic excellence by top college guides:

• For the 11th consecutive year, »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË was recognized as one of the nation’s outstanding institutions for undergraduate education through its inclusion in The Princeton Review’s 2021 “Best 386 Colleges” guide. Only about 14 percent of four-year colleges nationwide are profiled in the guidebook, which compiles its ranking lists based on data from student satisfaction surveys. »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË was the only institution in Florida to be included in the Top 20 of the publication’s Most Beautiful Campus ranking.
• »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË was selected as one of just 12 Florida-based institutions to be featured in the “2020-2021 Colleges of Distinction” listing, which recognizes excellence in student engagement, teaching, community, and outcomes.
• The “Fiske Guide to Colleges 2021,” the 37th edition of the leading college guide on the market, profiles »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË among the 300-plus institutions it identifies as the “best and most interesting” colleges in the nation.
• Forbes magazine highlights »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË in its annual guide, “America’s Top Colleges,” a ranking that focuses solely on the direct benefits a school provides its students in areas such as entrepreneurship, success, impact, and the consumer experience.
• Money magazine’s “Best Colleges 2020” lists »Ê¼Ò»ªÈË in its survey of the Best Colleges in America, Ranked by Value.