Newberry College has risen to the No. 11 spot on U.S. News & World Report’s 2021 list of Best Regional Colleges in the South, the college’s highest placement to date.

The annual higher education rankings, released today, showed the college’s significant climb of five places over last year’s No. 16 finish. This marks the fourth consecutive year Newberry has been named one of the South’s top 20 colleges.

“Our key performance indicators improve every year, especially our steady student enrollment growth and our significant improvement in retention and graduation rates,” said President Maurice Scherrens. “Our rise in these rankings reflects our relentless focus on being student-centered and creating a strong faculty-student learning environment.

“We are honored by this recognition. Achieving the highest regional best ranking in the history of the College is a testament to the dedication and hard work of our faculty and staff.”

According to U.S. News & World Report, the rankings compare four-year colleges and universities from across the country on 15 diverse measures of academic quality. Factors used in the rankings include average ACT and SAT scores, student-to-faculty ratios, graduation rates, tuition and financial aid, student body characteristics, post-graduate employment and more.

“Our huge jump in these rankings is proof that the hard work is paying off,” said Rob Best, chair of the Board of Trustees and a 1971 graduate. “This is a result of changes that Newberry College has made, over the last few years, but certainly in the last year, like expanding academic and athletic programs, improving campus resources, and making a college education more accessible.”

 

Find out more about the college rankings at www.usnews.com/colleges.