IU ranks 34th in finance magazine as ‘best value’

IU now ranks 34th on Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine list of “100 Best Values in Public College,” jumping 21 spots from its previous position.\nThe list, which is featured in the magazine’s February issue, ranks large and small colleges on their ability to “deliver a first-rate education without breaking the bank,” according to the magazine.\nThe rankings were decided after more than 500 public colleges and universities gave data to Peterson’s, a company that provides “information for college search and selection, test preparation and financial aid,” according to an IU \npress release.\nJane Bennett Clark, Kiplinger’s senior associate editor, attributed the jump in rank to incoming freshmen’s higher test scores, more financial aid and lower graduation debt for students. IU also has new grant programs at IU, such as Pell grants from the State Student Assistance Commission. Incoming freshmen who qualify and have an SAT score of at least 1150 will have tuition paid for by the grant, according to \nthe release.\nData from the 2006-2007 freshman class was used to judge the academic side of the ranking, according to the press release. The magazine also looked at “admission rates, freshman retention rates, student-faculty ratios and graduation rates,” according to the press release.\nIU President Michael McRobbie said he thinks steps the University has taken to help students with financial aid, such as the Pell grants, helped the University’s ranking on the list.\n“Our goal is to eliminate financial obstacles that might discourage otherwise well-qualified Indiana high school students from considering attending IU,” McRobbie added. “We have made significant progress on that front. As this has become known, we have attracted many more applications from top-notch students, and that is forcing us to become more selective in the admissions process. What Indiana high school students who want to attend IU need to know is that the real challenge facing them is not financial, but rather how well they perform in their studies.”