News Article

Once again, Gonzaga is ranked very high by U.S. News & World Report.

Gonzaga also ranked No. 2 among all of the top 61 schools in its classification for alumni giving; 27 percent of Gonzaga alumni gave back to their alma mater in 2004-05 and 2005-06, an indirect measure of student satisfaction. Only Walla Walla College (Washington) had a higher alumni giving rate (32 percent) among all schools in the “Universities–Master’s” West category. The Gonzaga University School of Engineering and Applied Science tied with five other schools as the No. 25 best undergraduate engineering program in the nation among engineering schools without a doctoral program; the School of Engineering and Applied Science was ranked No. 20 last year.

The rankings, made public at 12:01 a.m. (Eastern time) Aug. 17, mark the 13th consecutive year (20th in the past 23 years) that Gonzaga has been ranked among the West’s best universities. Gonzaga moved up to become the third best university in the West (Universities—master’s category) last fall after having been ranked No. 4 in the West each of the four previous years. In addition, Gonzaga has the No. 2 best average graduation rate in the West (master’s category) with 78 percent of its students earning a degree in six years or less, second only to Santa Clara University (85 percent). Gonzaga also had the second-best average freshman retention rate in the West (master’s category) as 91 percent of GU freshmen who entered from 2002-2005 returned the following fall.

The overall ranking of No. 3 in the West (Universities—Master’s) is based on several key measures of quality, including peer assessment (25 percent); graduation and retention rates (25 percent); faculty resources (20 percent); student selectivity (15 percent); financial resources (10 percent); and alumni giving (5 percent).

Gonzaga is rated the No. 2 best value in its classification based on the 2006 average annual cost of $22,328 (after receiving need-based grants); 58 percent of GU students received need-based grants in 2006, and the average discount from the total cost in 2006 rose to 38 percent (2006) from 36 percent in 2005. The rankings of undergraduate engineering schools are based solely on a peer survey of deans and senior faculty that asked them to rate the programs with which they are familiar on a scale of 1 to 5.

The “Universities–Master’s” classification includes 574 universities within four geographical areas – North, South, Midwest and West – that provide a full range of undergraduate and master’s programs but provide few, if any, doctoral programs. Gonzaga’s sole Ph.D. program is its Doctoral Program in Leadership Studies.

Gonzaga’s mission to care for the individual student and support the growth of the whole person – mind, body, and spirit – is evidenced by its 12-to-1 student-faculty ratio (2006). Only 2 percent of GU classes include more than 50 students, and 43 percent include fewer than 20 students (2006). Gonzaga also ranks high in the publication’s measure of the academic quality of incoming freshmen.Seventy-nine percent of GU freshmen who entered in fall 2006 ranked in the top 25 percent of their high school class.

Other factors used by U.S. News to measure academic quality include: percentage of full-time faculty; acceptance rate; and test scores. Highlights of the rankings will be published in the Aug. 27 edition of U.S. News & World Report magazine, available for newsstand purchase on Aug. 20 – the same day that the 2008 edition of “ America’s Best Colleges” guidebook is available. All of the rankings are posted online.

The Top 10 “Universities–Master’s” in the West:

1. Trinity University ( Texas)
2. Santa Clara University ( California)
3. Gonzaga University ( Washington)
4. Loyola Marymount University ( California)
5. University of Portland ( Oregon)
6. Mills College ( California)
6. Seattle University ( Washington)
6. University of Redlands ( California)
9. Whitworth College ( Washington)
10. Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo