SUNY Plattsburgh Ranked Highly by U.S. News & World Report, Other Pubs

SUNY Plattsburgh is ranked among “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report for the sixth straight year.

The college rose to No. 22 from No. 25 in the publication’s ranking of public regional universities in the north. Meanwhile, the college jumped up 11 places on the comprehensive list of all northern regional universities, tying at No. 81 with St. Joseph’s College, Millersville University of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia University.

The rankings released today are based on the opinions of administrators at peer institutions, student retention data, faculty resources, admissions selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving.

SUNY Plattsburgh’s latest recognition comes hot on the heels of two other honors: being named in national rankings for the “Best Bang for the Buck” and “High Return on Investment.”

The “Best Bang for the Buck”

Washington Monthly magazine set out to find the American colleges that “do the best job of helping non-wealthy students attain marketable degrees at affordable prices.”

The resulting Best Bang for the Buck list ranked SUNY Plattsburgh 30th in the nation overall and 10th within its set of comparable schools.

“It is a pretty exclusive list; out of the 1,572 colleges and universities in our broader rankings, only 349 made the cut as best-bang-for-the-buck schools,” wrote Robert Kelchen, assistant professor of higher education at Seton Hall University and author of the article, “America’s Best Bang for the Buck Colleges.”

“High Return on Investment”

Meanwhile, Affordable Colleges Online released its “High Return on Investment Colleges” list this summer. It used data from government, nonprofit and industry sources to determine that the average return on investment for a SUNY Plattsburgh degree was about $425,000.

That return placed Plattsburgh in the top 100 of all schools in the country.

"We have a special mix here: a truly top-notch faculty, small class sizes and plenty of personal attention — all at an affordable price," said SUNY Plattsburgh President John Ettling. "These rankings show that people are beginning to take note."

“As we continue to work with Governor Cuomo to position SUNY and New York to lead in affordability, access and quality, and President Obama puts these issues into focus nationally, we are proud to be recognized and ranked favorably by U.S. News & World Report,” said SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. “Congratulations to SUNY Plattsburgh and the many campuses representing SUNY on this list.”