The University of Oregon has been rated as one of the 100 best values in public colleges and universities for 2014 by Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine.

The UO is No. 100 on the new list, which takes into account each of the 621 public, four-year colleges and universities in the U.S. Kiplinger's bases its list on the combination of outstanding education and economic value.

"We are proud to have been included again on the Kiplinger's list of elite institutions for value," said Roger Thompson, the UO's vice president for enrollment management. "The UO has been on the list each of the past several years, which is a recognition of our broad spectrum of excellence and the value that represents for our students and their families."

The magazine assesses quality through standards including admission rates, freshman-to-sophomore retention rates, student-to-faculty ratios and four-year graduation rates. Cost criteria include low sticker prices, abundant financial aid and low average debt at graduation.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill again took the top spot in this year’s ranking – as it has each year since the magazine first ranked colleges for value in 1998.

“The college landscape today is very different – tuition increases and student debt dominate the national conversation surrounding higher education,” said Janet Bodnar, editor of Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. “This year’s top 100 schools have made admirable strides to maintain academic integrity and standards while meeting the financial needs of their students.”

The annual public school rankings appear in Kiplinger’s February 2014 issue – on newsstands Dec. 31, and online now.

- by Joe Mosley, UO Office of Strategic Communications