Point Loma Nazarene and USD Among List of Top College Values

Point Loma Nazarene University and the University of San Diego both made the list of the 100 best financial values for private universities in the United States, released this week by Kiplinger's magazine.

PLNU ranked 67th and USD 95th in the rankings.

Schools were ranked based on the percentage of total student costs that could be covered by financial aid, average student indebtedness at graduation, academic competitiveness, academic support and graduation rates.

“We recognize the invaluable benefits to students who have the opportunity to work directly with their professors because of small class size and shared research interests, to confront challenging social issues through community service-learning and international study experiences, and to enjoy a vibrant array of athletic, extra-curricular and co-curricular activities that build character, teamwork and leadership skills,” said Timothy O'Malley, USD's vice president for university relations.

“USD students are change-makers in a university community dedicated to applying the principles of Catholic social thought in their everyday lives to build a better world,” he added.

Princeton University was ranked first. The top school in the Golden State was the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, which was third. The magazine also put out a list of the 100 best values in private liberal arts colleges, which was led by Pomona College.

– City News Service