UNC Asheville Ranks Fifth In Nation Among Public Liberal Arts Colleges

UNC Asheville is ranked fifth in the nation among 21 public liberal arts colleges in U.S. News & World Report’s annual college rankings, released September 6. The annual rankings look at a range of measures, including academic reputation, and graduation and retention rates.

The U.S. News ranking highlights UNCA’s growing national reputation. Earlier this fall, UNCA was named a "Best Buy" among American colleges for the eighth year in the 2002 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges. UNCA was also listed in recently published Princeton Review’s The Best 331 Colleges for the seventh consecutive year.

UNC Asheville Chancellor Jim Mullen emphasized that each of these rankings give evidence to the wonderful opportunity UNCA offers to students in Western North Carolina and across the state and nation.

"Over the last month, all of us have been very pleased that UNC Asheville has been noted prominently by three major guides -- the Fiske Guide, the Princeton Guide and U.S. News & World Report. Each of them from different perspectives recognizes the positive trajectory that we are on as a campus," Mullen said. "I am excited that we are achieving this national recognition as we continue to fulfill our unique mission in the University of North Carolina system as its public liberal arts campus."

The newsstand book, America's Best Colleges, which contains all of the U.S. News college rankings, is slated to go on sale September 10. Many of the rankings will be in the September 17 issue of U.S. News & World Report, which also goes on sale September 10.

Media Contacts:

• Merianne Epstein, UNCA Public Information director, 828/251-6676