Auburn University at Montgomery rises in U.S. News & World Report rankings
Auburn University at Montgomery rises in U.S. News & World Report rankings
Auburn University at Montgomery rises in U.S. News & World Report rankings
For the third consecutive year, Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM) earned recognition from U.S. News & World Report in its annual assessment of the nation’s top educational institutions and undergraduate programs.
AUM ranked 33rd among public regional universities in the South and 79th overall in U.S. News & World Report’s 2020 Best Colleges guide. Both positions represent significant improvement over 2019, with AUM improving by five spots among regional public institutions and 16 positions in the overall ranking. Auburn University at Montgomery also earned the distinction of being one of the most ethnically diverse campuses among regional universities in the South, tying for 13th in the category and topping the list of Alabama schools.
AUM also ranked 73rd in the region among top performers for “social mobility,” a category in which U.S. News & World Report evaluates the effectiveness of universities in enrolling and graduating economically disadvantaged students. AUM ranked 88th nationally in the category of “First-Year Experiences,” which evaluates seminars and similar programs that regularly bring small groups of students together with faculty or staff in support of student success.
AUM’s College of Business also ranked among the top undergraduate business programs in the nation.
“We are proud to be ranked among U.S. News & World Report’s top universities in the region for the third consecutive year,” Auburn University at Montgomery Chancellor Carl A. Stockton said. “This recognition underscores the commitment our faculty and staff display on a daily basis in putting the needs of our students first and delivering a high-quality educational experience. I am especially pleased to see AUM jump 16 spots in the rankings due to our increase in graduation and retention rates.”
AUM’s graduation rate improved by 6 percent over 2019, while its freshman retention rate also rose. Among the factors in Auburn University at Montgomery’s rankings improvement were small class sizes, with nearly half of all courses having 20 or fewer students, and a 17:1 student-to-faculty ratio.
In its annual assessment of regional universities, U.S. News & World Report gathers data from and about each school in up to 15 areas pertaining to academic quality. Among the factors weighed were student-to-faculty ratio, percentage of classes with fewer than 20 students, average SAT and ACT scores, peer assessments by other institutions, annual alumni giving rate and graduation rate. The category for regional universities encompasses institutions that offer a broad range of undergraduate degree options, some master’s degree programs and few, if any, doctoral programs.
In addition to earning recognition from U.S. News & World Report, AUM was named one of the best colleges in the Southeast by The Princeton Review and won the Montgomery Advertiser Reader’s Choice Award voting as the top university in Alabama’s River Region.