The Best Value Colleges of 2017

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By Kiplinger, Special for USDR

Kiplinger has named its 300 Best College Values for 2017. The rankings, introduced in 1998, now combine public schools, private universities and private liberal arts colleges into a single, comprehensive list. Kiplinger also ranked the top 100 best values in each category. Unlike other rankings, which include subjective criteria in their assessments, Kiplinger restricts its analysis to measurable standards of academic quality and affordability. Kiplinger’s was the first ranking to focus on value, their core mission.

Swarthmore College took the #1 spot on the overall list, followed by Davidson and then Princeton, which took first place among private universities. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was ranked best public college for the 16^th consecutive time. Washington and Lee, which earned the #1 spot on last year’s overall list, took third place for best liberal arts college, after Swarthmore and Davidson.

The full rankings are now available online at kiplinger.com/links/colleges and will appear in print in the February 2017 issue of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, on newsstands January 3.

“There’s no way around it: College is expensive, and it’s going to stay that way for a long time. So, with our rankings—which weigh affordability alongside academic quality—our goal is to help students and their parents understand what’s really worth the price,” said Janet Bodnar, Editor of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine. “While some schools ranked higher than others, all 300 schools on the list are of extraordinary value, being chosen out of a universe of nearly 1,200 schools.”

At Kiplinger.com, visitors have access to the “Find the Best College for You” tool and other tools that let readers sort by admission rate, average debt at graduation and other criteria for all schools, plus in-state and out-of-state cost for public colleges. Also online: slide shows of the top ten schools in different categories, archives of past years’ rankings and an FAQ on the ranking methodology.
Kiplinger’s quality measures, which are weighted more heavily than cost, include the admission rate, the percentage of students who return for sophomore year, the student-faculty ratio and the four-year graduation rate. Cost criteria include sticker price, financial aid and average debt at graduation.

Below are highlights from this year’s rankings, including the top 50 overall values and each category’s top 10 schools.

Top 50 Overall College Values:

	Total Cost Per Year*	Average Need- Based Aid	Undergrad Class Average Debt
1. Swarthmore College	$64,840	$44,256	$18,262
2. Davidson College	62,923	40,140	19,929
3. Princeton University	61,140	44,890	8,577
4. Duke University	66,963	44,725	19,104
5. Washington and Lee University	61,447	42,322	21,683
6. Harvard University	64,565	46,409	16,723
7. Thomas Aquinas College	32,500	14,977	16,901
8. Vanderbilt University	62,598	40,267	21,506
9. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	46,576	17,244	20,127
10. Wellesley College	65,016	44,218	12,455
11. Middlebury College	65,332	41,778	17,797
12. Pomona College	65,857	42,064	13,381
13. Yale University	68,230	47,960	15,521
14. Amherst College	67,446	49,134	15,756
15. Williams College	66,280	46,007	16,593
16. Wesleyan University	66,062	41,244	24,860
17. Rice University	58,448	36,025	25,528
18. Bowdoin College	64,340	41,582	20,883
19. California Institute of Technology	63,000	38,983	20,677
20. Stanford University	63,996	43,167	21,238
21. Brown University	66,106	43,045	22,197
22. Massachusetts Institute of Technology	63,662	39,775	23,485
23. Colby College	64,795	42,468	23,342
24. Vassar College	66,390	45,109	17,847
25. Grinnell College	61,638	38,612	15,982
26. Dartmouth College	67,839	44,780	19,135
27. College of the Holy Cross	62,865	33,714	25,613
28. Columbia University	70,048	47,490	25,167
29. Hamilton College	65,250	41,170	17,654
30. Emory University	62,664	39,440	26,983
31. University of Richmond	61,980	38,985	26,250
32. Colgate University	66,070	43,321	20,859
33. Haverford College	67,919	45,390	14,750
34. Colorado College	63,808	40,539	22,068
35. Carleton College	64,893	36,482	20,063
36. Hillsdale College	36,922	8,079	26,225
37. Cornell University	65,813	38,377	24,394
38. Wheaton College	44,410	21,380	26,593
39. University of Notre Dame	65,093	35,807	27,237
40. University of Pennsylvania	67,280	41,598	26,157
41. Georgetown University	66,709	40,104	23,067
42. University of Chicago	70,542	42,467	21,291
43. Johns Hopkins University	67,106	36,687	24,702
44. Scripps College	67,464	36,444	18,692
45. Barnard College	67,142	40,661	20,008
46. University of Virginia	57,774	20,137	24,905
47. Boston College	66,364	36,755	20,849
48. Macalester College	63,028	35,887	21,937
49. Bates College	66,550	39,933	19,917
50. Kenyon College	65,230	39,628	27,000

*For public colleges, the listed figure is total cost per year for out-of-state students.

Top 10 Values in Private Universities:

	Total Cost Per Year	Average Need- Based Aid	Undergrad Class Average Debt
1. Princeton University	$61,140	$44,890	$8,577
2. Duke University	66,963	44,725	19,104
3. Harvard University	64,565	46,409	16,723
4. Vanderbilt University	62,598	40,267	21,506
5. Yale University	68,230	47,960	15,521
6. Rice University	58,448	36,025	25,528
7. California Institute of Technology	63,000	38,983	20,677
8. Stanford University	63,996	43,167	21,238
9. Brown University	66,106	43,045	22,197
10. Massachusetts Institute of Technology	63,662	39,775	23,485

Top 10 Values in Private Liberal Arts Colleges:

	Total Cost Per Year	Average Need- Based Aid	Undergrad Class Average Debt
1. Swarthmore College	$64,840	$44,256	$18,262
2. Davidson College	62,923	40,140	19,929
3. Washington and Lee University	61,447	42,322	21,683
4. Thomas Aquinas College	32,500	14,977	16,901
5. Wellesley College	65,016	44,218	12,455
6. Middlebury College	65,332	41,778	17,797
7. Pomona College	65,857	42,064	13,381
8. Amherst College	67,446	49,134	15,756
9. Williams College	66,280	46,007	16,593
10. Wesleyan University	66,062	41,244	24,860

Top 10 Values in Public Colleges for In-State Students:

	In-State Cost	Out-Of- State Cost	Undergrad Class Average Debt
1. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	$21,494	$46,576	$20,127
2. University of Virginia, Charlottesville	28,433	57,774	24,905
3. University of California, Berkeley	30,813	57,495	17,869
4. College of William and Mary	34,389	54,900	26,017
5. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor	26,952	57,330	26,034
6. University of California, Los Angeles	29,541	56,223	21,596
7. University of Florida, Gainesville	17,501	39,779	21,028
8. University of Maryland, College Park	23,139	45,003	26,818
9. Georgia Institute of Technology	24,160	44,352	25,182
10. University of Georgia, Athens	22,256	40,466	22,087

More on Methodology

The editors at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance start with data from nearly 1,200 public and private four-year schools, provided by Peterson’s. The list is then narrowed to the top schools based on measures of academic quality—including SAT or ACT scores, admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios, and four–year graduation rates. The editors then rank the schools using cost and financial aid measures. Academic quality carries more weight than costs.

About Kiplinger

For nine decades, the Kiplinger organization has led the way in personal finance and business forecasting. Founded in 1920 by W.M. Kiplinger, the company developed one of the nation’s first successful newsletters in modern times. The Kiplinger Letter, launched in 1923, remains the longest continuously published newsletter in the United States. In 1947, Kiplinger created the nation’s first personal finance magazine. Kiplinger.com is the fastest growing Web site in the personal finance space. Located in the heart of our nation’s capital, the Kiplinger editors remain dedicated to delivering sound, unbiased advice for your family and your business in clear, concise language. Become a fan of Kiplinger on Facebook or Kiplinger.com and follow Kiplinger on Twitter, LinkedIn and Tumblr.