Ring it up: UW-Madison named the nation’s 15th best value

Comparing measures of quality against cost, UW–Madison ranks as the 15th best value in American public higher education, according to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine.

UW–Madison was second overall among Big 10 universities, behind eighth-ranked University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was first overall. Two other Wisconsin campuses – UW-La Crosse (36) and UW-Eau Claire (69) – made the top 100 list.

“There is certainly value in looking at college costs in the context of academic quality, since it gives a clear picture of what students are getting for the money,” says Virginia Sapiro, interim provost. “Access has always been an important goal at UW–Madison, and this ranking makes sense given our high measures of quality.”

However, Sapiro adds, the university needs to continue to strike a balance between staying affordable and protecting quality, especially as financial pressures increase on the system. With the overall percentage of state general revenue support to higher education declining, tuition has by default become a larger portion of the budget in recent years. That trend needs to be kept in check, she says.

UW–Madison has ranked higher in past Kiplinger’s rankings. Three years ago – the last time the magazine compiled the rankings – UW–Madison ranked 13th. In both 1998 and 2000, the magazine placed UW–Madison at sixth overall.

Kiplinger’s uses a number of variables to determine a college’s ranking. Regarding quality, it factors in standard test score averages, admission rates, freshman retention, student-to-faculty ratio and graduation rates.

Regarding affordability, it looks at total costs for both resident and non-residents – including tuition, mandatory fees, room and board, and estimated book expenses. It also factors in the average cost for students with financial need by factoring in how much need is covered through grants. It also measures the average debt students accumulate before graduating:

The numbers on UW–Madison are as follows:

• Total in-state cost is $13,580; after aid is factored in, the average cost is $6,981;
• Total out-of-state (non-resident) cost is $28,420; factoring in available aid, the total cost becomes $21,731;
• The average debt after graduation for students who take out loans – approximately 50 percent of all undergraduates – is $17,528.

On the quality measures, Kiplinger’s notes that UW–Madison has an admission rate of 66 percent of applicants, a six-year graduation rate of 79 percent and a student-faculty ratio of 15 to 1.

The magazine reviews more than 500 public universities across the nation in creating the ranking. For more information, visit: www.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges.