U.S. News & World Report has released its 2020 Best Colleges rankings, and Clarion University of Pennsylvania was one of 43 colleges and universities to earn a “Top Public Regional Universities North” ranking. The North region encompasses the northeastern United States.
"The excellent academic opportunities offered by Clarion University are evident not only in this year's 14 percent larger freshman class on the Clarion campus, but also through this recognition by U.S. News & World Report," said Dr. Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson, Clarion president. "We are attracting not just greater numbers of students, but higher-performing students. Our freshman class has an average high school GPA of 3.5, and 74 percent of them ranked in the top half of their high school classes."
Clarion University also came in at #104 in the northern region in the "Top Performers on Social Mobility" category. Social Mobility measures how well schools graduated students who received federal Pell Grants. Pell-receiving students typically come from households whose family incomes are less than $50,000 annually, though most Pell Grant money goes to students with a total family income below $20,000.
"Clarion University's mission is to provide transformative, lifelong learning opportunities, and nothing has more transformative power than education," Pehrsson said.
Additionally, Clarion ranked #113 (tying with Bloomsburg University) in the "Regional Universities North" category. Other rankings include:
- #58 in Best Online Bachelor's Programs
- #89 in Best Online Graduate Programs (excluding MBA)
- #126 in Best Online MBA Programs
- #154 in Best Online Graduate Education Programs
Rankings are based on: outcomes (degree completion), 35 percent; faculty resources, 20 percent; expert opinion, 20 percent; financial resources, 10 percent; student excellence, 10 percent; and alumni giving, 5 percent.
For a complete list of the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings, visit www.usnews.com/best-colleges.