MACON — For the first time, U.S. News & World Report ranked Mercer University as the No. 1 best value in the South among regional universities. Also for the first time, Mercer made the publication’s list of “Up-and-Comers,” debuting at No. 6 in the South. In the 2013 “Best Regional Universities” category, Mercer moved up to No. 7 in the South, marking its 14th consecutive year in the Top 10 in the category. The University is also ranked No. 5 in the South for ethnic diversity and Mercer’s School of Engineering was again named among the Top 50 undergraduate engineering programs in the nation, coming in at No. 44.
Mercer’s best value ranking came in the “Great Schools at Great Prices” category, which the magazine based on a number of criteria, including academic quality and the net cost of attendance for students receiving need-based aid. The ranking is also based on the premise that “the higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the deal.”
To determine the “Up-and-Comers,” U.S. News asked the college administrators surveyed for the 2013 rankings to nominate institutions they thought had recently made the most promising and innovative changes in the areas of academics, faculty, student life, campus or facilities. To make the ranking, the universities had to be among the most often cited by college presidents, provosts and admissions deans as the top 10 up-and-coming schools in their U.S. News ranking category.
The 2013 ranking marks the 23rd consecutive year the University has been among the South’s top 15 regional universities, which includes institutions that provide a full range of undergraduate and master’s programs, and few, if any, doctoral programs. More than 500 universities are ranked within four geographic areas – North, South, Midwest and West. Mercer’s overall score of 82 in the magazine’s rankings places it among the top 25 regional universities in the country.
U.S. News ranked Mercer No. 5 on the list of most diverse student bodies by factoring in the proportion of minority students — leaving out international students — and the overall mix of groups in each institution’s 2011–2012 student body.
Mercer’s School of Engineering, which was established in 1985, consistently ranks among the country’s top engineering programs that offer the bachelor’s or master’s as their terminal degree. Mercer is one of only three undergraduate engineering programs in the Southeast to be in the 2013 U.S. News Top 50.
About Mercer University:
Founded in 1833, Mercer University is a dynamic and comprehensive center of undergraduate, graduate and professional education. The University enrolls more than 8,300 students in 11 schools and colleges – liberal arts, law, pharmacy, medicine, business, engineering, education, theology, music, nursing and continuing and professional studies – on campuses in Macon, Atlanta and Savannah – and four regional academic centers across the state. The Mercer Health Sciences Center launched July 1, 2012, and includes the University’s medical, nursing and pharmacy schools and will add a fourth college – the College of Health Professions – on July 1, 2013. Mercer is affiliated with four teaching hospitals — Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah, the Medical Center of Central Georgia in Macon, and The Medical Center and St. Francis Hospital in Columbus. The University also has educational partnerships with Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex in Warner Robins and Piedmont Healthcare in Atlanta. It operates an academic press and a performing arts center in Macon and an engineering research center in Warner Robins. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia to field an NCAA Division I athletic program. www.mercer.edu
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