Saint Michael’s a Kiplinger’s “Best Value” again for 2017

December 16, 2016

Saint Michael’s College has been named to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance’s list of the Top 300 Best College Values of 2017. Schools making the list “embody exceptional academic quality and affordability,” according to Kiplinger’s. Saint Michael’s also was a Kiplinger’s Best College Value of 2016.

Introduced in 1998, the rankings highlight public schools, private universities and private liberal arts colleges that combine outstanding academics with affordable cost, and this year combine those three categories into a single, comprehensive list. In addition, Kiplinger has ranked the top 100 best values in each category, and Saint Michael’s earned a spot on the magazine’s list of “100 best values in private universities.”

Kiplinger assesses value by measurable standards of academic quality and affordability. Quality measures include the admission rate, the percentage of students who return for sophomore year, the student-faculty ratio and four-year graduation rate. Cost criteria include sticker price, financial aid and average debt at graduation.

“I’m thrilled to see Saint Michael’s included on the Kiplinger’s Best Value list again this year,” said Michael Stefanowicz, Saint Michael’s director of admission. “What a wonderful accolade that celebrates our campus-wide commitment to a high quality liberal arts education, as well as the innovation and care that are characteristic of our focus on affordability and retention.”

Janet Bodnar, editor of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, said that with the rankings, which weigh affordability alongside academic quality, “our goal is to help students and their parents understand what’s really worth the price … [and] all 300 schools on the list are of extraordinary value, being chosen out of a universe of 1,200.”

At Kiplinger.com, visitors have access to the “Find the Best College for You” tool and other tools that let readers sort by admission rate, average debt at graduation and other criteria for all schools, plus in-state and out-of-state cost for public universities.

The complete rankings are now available online at kiplinger.com/links/colleges and will appear in print in the February 2017 issue of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, on newsstands January 3.

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