U.S. News: Duquesne a Top Tier School, Plus a Best Value for Students

One of the nation’s universities with the best value, considering cost and academic quality, Duquesne continues to be ranked by U.S. News & World Report in its top tier of national universities.

In the 2014 U.S. News Best College ranking, Duquesne remained among the top schools—and the top Catholic institutions—in the nation.

Ranked No. 45 as a Great School at a Great Price, Duquesne is one of six Catholic institutions in the top 50 considered as great values for students, based upon academic quality and the cost for a student receiving an average level of need-based aid. Only schools in or near the top half of the U.S. News national rankings were even considered for this list.

Of the Catholic schools included as a great value, Duquesne’s tuition cost was one of the lowest. The ranking showed that Duquesne’s 2012 tuition cost averaged $26,912 after needs-based grants—and a majority of Duquesne students (67 percent) received need-based grants. The average discount was 37 percent.  Along with Duquesne, the University of Notre Dame, Georgetown University, Boston College, Loyola University Chicago and Marquette University were the Catholic institutions included in this ranking.

“As we start the academic year with the largest class of incoming freshmen in the University’s history, we are proud of creating this quality academic learning environment at a rate affordable to so many students,” said President Charles J. Dougherty. “Students have access to top-flight researchers and facilities—even as undergraduates—and the personal mentoring that comes with the smaller classroom sizes typical on our campus. All of these factors can be important to success in the classroom—and ultimately, in the job market.”

Small classrooms and a high freshman retention rate were noted in Duquesne’s national ranking at No. 121 with Clarkson, Colorado State, DePaul and Temple universities, Catholic University of America and the University of Utah.

Of these schools, Duquesne had the highest 2012 graduation rate (74 percent). Additionally, 43 percent of its classes had less than 20 students and 87 percent of the freshman students continued their studies on campus.

The University stood out as one of the top schools on the High School Counselor Rankings, which were selected by guidance counselors on U.S. News’ Best High Schools list, at No. 127.

By peer assessment, the undergraduate business school was ranked as having one of the country’s best business programs among the credentialed Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business institutions.

Duquesne also is considered an A-Plus School for B Students, where U.S. News says “nonsuperstars have a decent shot at being accepted and thriving.”  This category, the rankings note, may be the sign of schools seeking “a broad, engaged student body.”

The U.S. News rankings are composed from information gathered about more than 1,500 of the country’s four-year institutions. The national category includes 281 institutions, 101 of them private schools like Duquesne, and seven for-profit.