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UVA in the Rankings

How the University of Virginia stacked up in annual rankings of top colleges and universities

Dan Addison

U.S. News & World Report

Criteria: Graduation and first-year student retention rates; assessment by administrators at peer institutions; faculty resources; student selectivity; financial resources; alumni giving; graduation rate performance; high school counselor ratings of colleges; range of majors and master’s and doctoral programs; commitment to producing groundbreaking research; and peer assessment surveys.

2

Public Schools

Tied with UCLA and one spot behind Cal Berkeley. It was noted that 33 percent of full-time UVA undergraduates receive some kind of need-based financial aid and the average need-based scholarship or grant award is $20,058.

6

Undergraduate Business Programs

UVA’s programs in management, marketing and finance received high marks. The University of Pennsylvania was No. 1.

14

Best Colleges for Veterans

Established in 2013, the University of Virginia Military Veterans Community (known as UVA Mil Vets), is a key resource.

24

National Universities

UVA’s student-faculty ratio of 15:1 and a 97 percent freshman retention rate were noted. Princeton was No. 1.

Business Insider

Criteria: Early career earnings, graduation rate and student-life experience carried the most weight.

1

Public Colleges

UVA ranked ahead of Michigan and Berkeley. Alumni median salary 10 years after enrollment of $58,600 was highlighted.

9

Best Colleges in America

UVA jumped 19 spots from the previous year, leapfrogging four Ivy League schools.

Princeton Review

Criteria: student surveys.

2

Best College Newspaper

The Cav Daily was second to Columbia University’s Daily Spectator.

7

Colleges That Pay You Back Without Aid

Based on return-on-investment surveys collected from alumni that covered starting, midcareer salaries and career social impact.

The Economist

Darden School of Business
Criteria: Opening new career opportunities (35 percent); personal development and educational experience (35 percent); increasing salary (20 percent); and the potential to network (10 percent).

1

Education Experience

UVA was at the top for the sixth consecutive year.

3

Overall MBA Program

Incoming students have an average GMAT score of 707.

3

Personal Development and Educational Experience

More than 97 percent of full-time faculty members have a Ph.D.