Monmouth University was again named to ‘Money Magazine’s’ annual “Best Colleges for Your Money” roster released Aug. 25. Monmouth has appeared on the list, which assesses nearly 750 four-year colleges, every year since its inception.
“Our inclusion on the list reflects the combination of academic excellence and access to opportunity that we provide to our students,” said Monmouth University President Patrick F. Leahy. “It also speaks to the success of our graduates, who are making their mark in a variety of industries,” he said.
The rankings are based on three categories: quality, affordability, and outcomes, spanning 27 different criteria including graduation rates, faculty ratings, peer ratings, net price paid to attend, average debt, employment, and earnings. The “outcomes” category is primarily based on alumni salary data from PayScale.com and the federal College Scorecard.
In the past, ‘Money Magazine’ has given equal weight to each of the crucial factors within the rankings. This year, the editors have emphasized the weight of affordability within the assessment. Now, affordability accounts for 40 percent of the ranking, while the other two account for 30 percent each.
“Making an outstanding private education affordable has also been at the forefront of our planning at Monmouth University,” Leahy said. “In fact, we have increased our financial aid budget to the highest level in the University’s history—$79.2 million, a 7.9% increase over last year. We will do our best to continue to make Monmouth University as accessible and affordable as possible,” he added.
More information on this year’s rankings can be found online.