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WELLESLEY, Mass. -- For the seventh consecutive year, U.S.
News & World Report has ranked Wellesley College
fourth among national liberal-arts colleges. For the
past 13
years, Wellesley has placed among the top five colleges
in the annual listing. Although there is not a separate
category for women’s colleges, Wellesley continues
to be the highest ranked women’s college.
"Although no survey can capture the essence of the extraordinary
educational experience that Wellesley provides,
we are pleased that the College
has received national
recognition
for the
high caliber
of its
liberal-arts
education," said Andy Shennan, dean of the college.
"We believe that Wellesley's strengths as an institution
in terms of students, faculty, staff and alumnae support
are outstanding."
This
year Wellesley follows Williams in the top spot and Amherst
and Swarthmore , who are tied for second.
Wellesley received kudos for its "campus diversity," ranking
fourth among liberal-arts colleges in that category.
In another nod, Wellesley was recognized for its
outstanding undergraduate research and creative projects,
joining institutions including Harvard, Yale and other
top private and public universities and colleges in an
alphabetical
listing.
In
the category of "Best Values: Liberal Arts Colleges Bachelors," Wellesley
was ranked fifth on the list, which considers "a
school’s
academic quality, as indicated by its U.S. News ranking,
to the net cost of attendance
for a student who receives the average level of financial
aid." Wellesley was ranked twelfth among private
colleges
whose graduates carry the least amount
of debt.
Other
outstanding categories for Wellesley include its level
of alumnae support, which at 53 percent earned the
College the No. 9 "giving rank" in the nation. Another
standout category is average freshman retention rate, for
which Wellesley
boasts a 96 percentage.
The latest edition of U.S. News' "America's Best
Colleges" was published in the weekly magazine dated
August 23 and in an annual guidebook. The information
is also
available
on the web at www.usnews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/rankindex_brief.php.
Wellesley College has been a leader in liberal arts and
the education of women for more than 125 years. The College's
500-acre campus near Boston is home to 2,300 undergraduate
students.
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