UNG moves up in U.S. News & World Report rankings
Article By: Clark Leonard
The University of North Georgia (UNG) is ranked 15th among public regional universities in the South on the U.S. News & World Report 2021 Best Colleges list released Sept. 14, up one spot from the previous year's ranking.
In the magazine's annual ranking of universities and colleges, UNG is also the top-ranked public university in Georgia on the Best Value Schools list of Regional Universities in the South.
"Our continued ascent in national rankings highlights the dedication of our faculty and staff and the success of our outstanding students," President Bonita C. Jacobs said. "UNG strives to prepare students to be leaders in an increasingly complex and diverse world, and our strong reputation for offering a high-quality education and experience at an affordable price adds value to their degrees."
Other accolades for UNG in the U.S. News rankings include:
- Top-ranked public university in Georgia on the Best Colleges for Veterans list of Regional Universities in the South.
- Ranked third for the least student debt load at graduation among Regional Public Universities in the South.
- Ranked seventh among public universities in Georgia on the Best Undergraduate Business Programs list.
The U.S. News Best Colleges rankings evaluate colleges and universities on 16 measures of academic quality. The results allow students and their families to compare at a glance the quality of U.S. institutions based on widely accepted indicators of excellence such as first-year student retention, graduation rates and the strength of the faculty.
UNG also placed well in another recent national ranking. UNG was ranked third among public universities in Georgia, preceded by Georgia Tech and the University of Georgia, in Money magazine's list of Best Colleges released in August 2020. That list focused on a combination of strength of education, affordability, and outcomes such as earnings and employment.
UNG serves about 20,000 students and is one of the state's largest public universities. UNG's five campuses are located across northeast Georgia in Blue Ridge, Cumming, Dahlonega, Gainesville, and Oconee County. UNG offers more than 100 programs of study, including certificates, associate degrees, bachelor's degrees, master's degrees, and professional doctoral programs.
The complete list of colleges is available at the 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Rankings website.
Fall graduates look to future with optimism
UNG awarded roughly 985 degrees and certificates to students this fall, and it honored more than 650 of those graduates in a pair of Dec. 7 commencement ceremonies.
Luncheon honors scholarship recipients
Five nontraditional female students at UNG each earned a $2,000 scholarship from the Women of UNG on Dec. 5 at the Women's Holiday Scholarship Luncheon.
Special ed lab aids future educators
During the fall semester, future educators from UNG took part in a special education lab in which they worked with a software tool that helped them assess students, craft education plans and receive immediate feedback.
Grads prepare for their next steps
UNG will award almost 1,000 degrees and certificates this fall, and more than 600 graduates are scheduled to take part in the Dec. 7 commencement ceremonies.