The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, provides students one of the best values in public education according to The Princeton Review.
The Princeton Review ranks American colleges based on undergraduate academics, affordability and financial aid for its annual "Best Value Colleges" list. The list features 50 public and 50 private colleges and universities. UT was the only university in Tennessee to make the public colleges list.
The 100 "best value" choices were selected from among more than 650 public and private colleges and universities using most recently reported data.
This year, The Princeton Review teamed up with USA Today to present its "best value" colleges list. Previously, the list was reported on its Web site and in its book, America’s Best Value Colleges.
"We’re proud that The Princeton Review recognizes the value we offer our students because we’ve worked diligently to devote resources to ensure our university is affordable and accessible," said UT Knoxville Interim Chancellor Jan Simek. "As the state’s flagship research university, we must strive to offer the best education possible for the best and brightest students in Tennessee."
The Tennessee Pledge and Tennessee Promise scholarships target students from high schools that have not traditionally sent many of their graduates to UT Knoxville. They also allow students to graduate debt-free by paying for mandatory college costs not covered by other federal or state aid.
In addition, the university has launched the "Achieve the Dream" program for fall 2009 that makes grant money available to Tennessee students from lower-middle-income families whose incomes are too high to qualify them for Pell Grants or the Pledge Scholarship, but who still need financial help with college costs.
The Best Value Colleges for 2009 rankings are available online at http://www.princetonreview.com/bestvaluecolleges.
The Princeton Review is a New York City-based education services company known for its test-prep courses, college and graduate school admission services, books and education programs.