UCM Ranks 16th Among U.S. News & World Report’s Top Midwest Institutions

WARRENSBURG, MO – For the third consecutive year, the University of Central Missouri maintained its spot at #16 as a top public institution in the Midwest region on the 2022 U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges rankings, and was also listed #31 among best colleges and universities for Veterans, #60 as a best value institution, and #74 among best regional universities in the Midwest. The rankings were released this week.

 

U.S. News & World Report is a widely known source used by prospective students to find colleges and universities that match their educational needs and goals. While UCM tied numerically with another Missouri university as a top public institution and as a best regional university, the #74 regional university ranking is a move up two places from the previous list, and only one Missouri public university ranked higher than UCM as a best value institution. Additionally, UCM moved up 19 spots from a year ago for its #31 ranking as a best college for veterans.

 

The annual U.S. News & World Report online feature also ranked UCM #110 among the top performers on social mobility, which is a category established within the past three years to rank institutions based on their success in helping economically disadvantaged students to finish their higher education. The part-time MBA also was listed among programs ranked between #206 and #273, and the speech pathology program was ranked #189. 

 

Information released by U.S. News & World Report is based on data that was collected from approximately 1,800 colleges and universities across the nation which are profiled in the U.S. News Best Colleges directory, although only about 1,400 of these institutions are ranked.

 

U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on data that each college or university reports to the U.S. Department of Education. Regional universities included public and private colleges and universities that offer a full range of undergraduate programs and some master’s programs but few doctoral programs.

 

In its profile of UCM, university characteristics noted for the data year include:

• A 16:1 student-faculty ratio with 61.3 percent of the university’s classes having fewer than 20 students per class.
• Safety and security services that include 24-hour foot and vehicle patrols, late-night transport/escort services, lighted pathways, student patrols, controlled dormitory access.
• Sixty-three percent of full-time undergraduates receive some kind of need-based financial aid.
• The average need-based scholarship or grant award is $4,875.
• The most popular majors include: health professions and related programs; computer and information sciences and support services; education; business management; liberal arts and sciences; marketing and related support services; homeland security, law enforcement, firefighting and related protective services; visual and performing arts, biological and biomedical sciences; and engineering technologies and engineering-related fields.

The U.S. News & World Report rankings follow recent recognition by UCM as one of The Princeton Review’s “Best in the Midwest” colleges and universities for 2022.