Md., Va. Schools Among Best Values in Public Colleges

Finance magazine Ranks 100 Best Values in Public Colleges

Several public colleges in Maryland and Virginia have received top honors for proving a higher education can come at an affordable price.

Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine released its list of the 100 best values in public colleges. The University of Virginia, in Charlottesville, led the local pack at No. 3 followed by the College of William and Mary, in Williamsburg, Va., at No. 4 and the University of Maryland College Park at 5. These particular rankings are based on in-state tuition costs.

The entire list, including schools like George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., can be found at Kiplinger's website.

According to the Huffington Post, Kiplinger weighed out dozens of factors to rank the schools.

"Kiplinger initially reviewed 500 schools using Peterson's/Nelnet data. After narrowing the list to around 120 schools based on academic quality -- using test scores, admission and persistence rates, student-faculty ratios, and graduation rates as their metrics -- Kiplinger evaluated the institutions based on cost, calculated by looking at tuition, compulsory fees, room and board, books and aid, including grants and other forms of aid and outstanding debt".

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is No. 1 for the 10th time since Kiplinger began its analysis in 1998. The rankings appear in the magazine's February 2011 issue and online.

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