Binghamton University was ranked last month as the No. 1 best value for out-of-state students attending a public college.
The list of 100 Best Values in Public Colleges, compiled by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, annually ranks the top public college values in the United States.
The rankings are determined from the best public education and economic values. In this year’s list, BU is also ranked seventh in the nation for in-state public college values. According to a press release from the University dated Oct. 31, Kiplinger’s states that private colleges in the United States have averaged $33,000 a year for tuition, compared to most of the top public schools on the list, which fall under $22,000 a year.
In the release, Fred Frailey, Kiplinger’s editor, said families of all incomes are feeling a pinch due to the current economic crisis.
BU Director of Undergraduate Admissions Cheryl Brown said that University officials were thrilled to hear about the ranking.
“Kiplinger’s said they put double the weight on the quality of the school and not cost,” Brown said.
According to Brown, factors that make up the educational quality of a school include SAT scores of undergraduates and the learning students received before coming to BU.
“Everything we strive to do is a measure of our excellence, which helps our school stay up at the top of these rankings,” she said.
Sandra Starke, vice provost of enrollment management at the University, said Kiplinger’s has always ranked BU high on their lists for the best public school values.
“We were ranked No. 2 last year and have been in the top 10 for years now,” she said.
Starke said the University’s national reputation is boosted by people who realize there’s something special about the school.
“If we continue to hire excellent faculty, recruit top students and offer a wonderful core curriculum, we should have no problem remaining the leaders of the nation in this category,” Starke added.
So far this fall, BU received 3,552 applications from out-of-state and international students combined entering the University as freshmen. There were also 691 transfer applications for the same category of students.
Overall, the University has received 50 percent more applications than it did at this time last year.
The number of applications that BU receives from out-of-state and international applicants for freshman admission has been increasing. According to Starke, the number of freshman out-of-state applications has risen from 248 received in fall 2004, compared to 469 this year.
Hwan Kim, a sophomore majoring in chemistry who is originally from Nebraska, said he was looking for an out-of-state university and had heard about the public system in New York.
“Since Binghamton was the top-ranked SUNY school, I made my decision accordingly,” Kim said.
Kim also said the University’s low cost and high value of education reinforced his decision to attend BU.
The full list of rankings is available at Kiplinger.com/money/collegevalues.