National Attraction

La Verne Continues to Receive High Rankings

Since its founding in 1891, the University of La Verne has sought to provide a quality education to all those who seek it. Such an all-encompassing effort covers a wide range of subjects, among them cost, access, relevance and attainability, issues that remain at the forefront of today’s ongoing dialogs involving higher education.

So when La Verne receives national recognition for its efforts in these and related areas, it proves that the university’s vision and commitment continue to be both pertinent and significant in meeting the educational needs of our global society.

Over the past year, La Verne again garnered attention from publications, organizations and web entities that rate the country’s top colleges and universities.

Many of the national rankings separate schools into categories taken from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. La Verne is designated as a National University because it offers a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master’s and doctoral programs. National Universities are also committed to supporting research by its faculty and students.

Leading La Verne’s list of accolades is its recognition in Washington Monthly’s “Best Bang for the Buck” rankings. These ratings assess the economic value students receive per dollar spent. For 2014, La Verne is the top-ranked California private school in the National Universities category. And it rates No. 2 among the 14 California private schools selected to the All-Schools category, which lists 386 colleges and universities.

• The University has again been named to a number of prestigious U.S. News & World Report rankings. La Verne’s Online Undergraduate Programs are rated best in California in the publication’s second annual Online Education National Rankings, and 13^th overall out of 210 institutions numerically ranked. In the Online Graduate Business Programs ratings, La Verne is 95^th nationally and No. 2 among Los Angeles County-based schools.
• In the U.S. News Best Colleges for Veterans rankings, La Verne is the only California school – public or private – that received the recognition as a National University. For more than 45 years La Verne has provided quality educational opportunities to members of the nation’s armed services. U.S. News recently established this rating to establish a list of top-ranked schools that afford veterans and active-duty personnel essential benefits to help them earn a college education.
• For more than 30 years, U.S. News has compiled the most recognized annual rating of the country’s quality institutions of higher education. Because of the reputation it has established, its listings are utilized by many college counselors and directors of admission. For the fifth consecutive year, La Verne is a top-tier selection in the 2015 America’s Best Colleges National University rankings.
• La Verne again made the Forbes America’s Top Colleges rankings, which annually recognizes the top 20 percent of the nation’s undergraduate universities. Its list of 650 schools, determined in partnership with the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, uses 12 factors within five general categories – Student Satisfaction, Post-Graduate Success, Student Debt, Four-Year Graduation Rate, and Academic Success. As stated by Forbes, “our sights are set directly on ROI: What are students getting out of college?”
• The University’s accolades are not restricted to the national stage. The College of Business and Public Management’s MBA Program has again garnered recognition from the Los Angeles Business Journal. Buoyed by a 22 percent increase in degrees awarded from the previous year, La Verne’s 622 MBA graduates in 2013-14 is fourth highest in Los Angeles County.
• The 2014-15 Colleges of Distinction list features 294 schools nationwide, all selected for providing innovative, teacher-centered undergraduate education. La Verne is one of 20 California colleges and universities recognized by CollegesofDistinction.com for being dedicated to what it referred to as the core values of engaged students, great teaching, vibrant learning communities and successful student outcomes.
• Long known as a destination of choice by transfer students, La Verne proved to be a leading institution for in-state student transfers from California Community Colleges. According to the most recent data available by the California Community College Transfer Counselor website, La Verne finished fourth among nonprofit universities and sixth overall with 500 transfers in 2013-14.
• In Washington Monthly’s comprehensive list of the country’s top schools – what it refers to as being “a different kind of college ranking” – La Verne is one of 21 California institutions included in the National Universities ratings.  The 277-school ranking looks at access, affordability and public service as key components to measure the quality of an institution, and assesses the types of students a school admits as well as the impact its graduates have upon their communities and their professions.
• The inaugural Social Mobility Index (SMI) created by CollegeNET, Inc., and PayScale, Inc., rates La Verne third among California private schools and 185^th nationally among 539 institutions named to the list. The data-driven ranking system recognizes those U.S. colleges and universities that efficiently graduate students from low-income economic backgrounds into promising careers. The stated goal of SMI is to refocus higher education “toward providing economic opportunity for our citizens.”

Every year prospective students and their parents begin the seemingly overwhelming task of trying to determine which institution offers not only the best curriculum and price but also the best fit. Rankings are one tool available to help identify those institutions deserving closer review, which is why such recognition plays an essential role in the continuing growth of La Verne’s image and national impact.

Through its continuing commitment to its mission statement, the opportunities its innovative La Verne Experience provides, and its dedication to progress through its 2020 Strategic Vision, the University of La Verne will continue to receive quality attention as its students achieve more than they ever imagined.