Monday, August 27, 2018
  Awards and Recognitions, Announcements

By Marci Caltabiano-Ponce

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, TEXAS – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley has been ranked seventh on a list of 50 schools in the Best Bang for the Buck in the Southern Colleges category.

The ranking was compiled by online magazine Washington Monthly in its September/October 2018 College Rankings: What Can Colleges Do for You?” The guide describes the Best Bang listing as an “exclusive list of schools that help non-wealthy students attain marketable degrees at affordable prices.”

‘‘We are extremely pleased to be recognized by Washington Monthly because their rankings emphasize values that are crucial to us
—Guy Bailey, UTRGV President’’

“We are extremely pleased to be recognized by Washington Monthly because their rankings emphasize values that are crucial to us,” said UTRGV President Guy Bailey. “Our focus has always been on student success and on providing an excellent education at the most affordable price possible. We are delighted that others recognize our success in achieving these goals.”

The ranking analyzed 21 categories to determine the listings. (Numbers in parentheses indicate UTRGV statistics used for the ranking):

  1. Eight-year graduation rate. (52%)
  2. Graduation rate rank. (145)
  3. Predicted grad rate based on percentage of Pell recipients, incoming SATs, etc. (56%)
  4. Grad rate performance rank. (135)
  5. Pell/non-Pell grad rate gap. (-4%)
  6. Pell grad gap rank. (52)
  7. Students receiving Pell grants. (63%)
  8. Predicted percentage of Pell based on ACT/SAT and admittance rates. (48%)
  9. Pell performance rank. (17)
  10. First-gen students. (55%)
  11. Predicted % of first-gen students based on ACT/SAT and admittance rates.  (42%)
  12. First-gen performance rank. (10)
  13. Median earnings 10 years after entering college. ($40,702)
  14. Predicted median earnings. ($39,314)
  15. Earnings performance rank. (54)
  16. Net price of attendance for families below $75,000 income. ($3,102)
  17. Net price rank. (3)
  18. Percentage repaying $1 in loan principal 5 years after leaving college. (60%)
  19. Repayment rank. (145)
  20. Predicted repayment rank. (56%)
  21. Repayment rate performance rank. (27)

Along with UTRGV, two other UT System schools were ranked on the list of 50 schools in the Best Bang for the Buck in the Southern Colleges category: The University of Texas at El Paso was ranked 25th, and The University of Texas at Arlington was ranked 44th.

Washington Monthly also conducted an overall ranking of 316 schools across the country based on social mobility, research and service scores. In those overall rankings, UTRGV is listed 79th out of the 316.

Other UT System schools who made the national overall rankings were The University of Texas at Austin (75th), The University of Texas at El Paso (106th), The University of Texas at Arlington (107th), The University of Texas at San Antonio (181st), and The University of Texas at Dallas (209th).



ABOUT UTRGV

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) was created by the Texas Legislature in 2013 as the first major public university of the 21st century in Texas. This transformative initiative provided the opportunity to expand educational opportunities in the Rio Grande Valley, including a new School of Medicine, and made it possible for residents of the region to benefit from the Permanent University Fund – a public endowment contributing support to the University of Texas System and other institutions.

UTRGV has campuses and off-campus research and teaching sites throughout the Rio Grande Valley including in Boca Chica Beach, Brownsville (formerly The University of Texas at Brownsville campus), Edinburg (formerly The University of Texas-Pan American campus), Harlingen, McAllen, Port Isabel, Rio Grande City, and South Padre Island. UTRGV, a comprehensive academic institution, enrolled its first class in the fall of 2015, and the School of Medicine welcomed its first class in the summer of 2016.