U.S. News & World Report Ranks RIT Among Top Master’s Universities

Engineering, co-op programs highlighted for excellence

RIT ranks among America's Best Colleges of 2008

Rochester Institute of Technology is again recognized for educational quality and value in the annual U.S. News & World Report: America’s Best Colleges. Since the magazine began ranking colleges in 1983, RIT has consistently been listed among the top regional universities.

RIT ranked eighth overall in the “Best Universities – Master’s (North region)” category, and scored second in peer assessment, which is a survey of presidents, provosts and deans from other universities judging a school’s academic excellence.

In the “Great Schools, Great Prices” category, RIT ranked sixth among master’s universities in the North. The formula used to determine which schools offer the best value relates to a school’s academic quality to the net cost of attendance for a student who receives the average level of financial aid. The higher the quality of program and the lower the cost, the better the deal, according to U.S. News.

In the “Programs to Look For” category, RIT was listed as one of only 14 colleges nationally recognized for excellence in the “internships/co-ops” category. It is the sixth straight year RIT has made the list – based on nominations from college presidents, chief academic officers and deans – since U.S. News began the category in 2002.

RIT is also recognized among the top 70 undergraduate engineering programs among universities where the highest degree is a doctorate. In 2003, launched its microsystems engineering Ph.D. program, the first of its kind in the nation.

“We are proud that RIT is consistently recognized by U.S. News & World Report,” says RIT President Bill Destler. “Our continued rankings reaffirm the high value of RIT’s excellent academic programs and commitment to student success.

Destler continues, “It is not just the career orientation of RIT that makes the university so unusual and special. It is the extraordinary focus of its academic programs around science and technology, business, and design and the arts, combined with the outstanding programs of the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, that lead me to believe that RIT can be moved to a position of even greater prominence in international higher education.”

Emmanuel Contomanolis, associate vice president and director of the Office of Cooperative Education and Career Services, states, “RIT is pleased and proud to be recognized as a national leader in cooperative education. This highlights what RIT has traditionally done so well: provide students a real-world experience as part of their degree program.”

U.S. News Background:

U.S News bases its comprehensive university rankings on peer assessment, graduation and freshmen retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving. The America’s Best Colleges newsstand book and the weekly edition of U.S. News & World Report will both go on sale Monday, Aug. 20. To see the rankings online, visit the U.S. News & World Report Website.


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