College Ranked Among Top 10 Public Regional Colleges in North

Pennsylvania College of Technology has achieved Top 10 status among the best public, four-year colleges in the northern region of the United States.

In the latest rankings of America's Best Colleges by the U.S. News Media Group, Penn College ranked ninth (tied with University of Pittsburgh-Bradford and Vermont Technical College) in the category of "Top Public Schools: Regional Colleges (North)."

The annual rankings were announced online by U.S. News & World Report and included in the 2011 Best Colleges guidebook, which will be available for purchase at newsstands. In an overall assessment of the "Best Regional Colleges" that includes public and private institutions, Penn College ranked No. 31 in the North (again tied with University of Pittsburgh-Bradford and Vermont Technical College, as well as New England College and Eastern Nazarene College).

"National recognition puts a spotlight on Penn College and gives parents and potential students another tool for weighing their enrollment options," college President Davie Jane Gilmour said. "More importantly, it reflects something we value much more than any ranking: reputation. How well we perform in preparing students for ever-changing workforce needs and success of our graduates in finding meaningful work those are the numbers that matter most to us."

The U.S. News & World Report survey's "baccalaureate" category includes more than 300 schools within four geographic regions (North, Midwest, South and West). It encompasses institutions that focus on the undergraduate experience and offer a broad range of degree programs in the liberal arts and in professional fields such as business, nursing and education.

The rankings group colleges based on categories created by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, comparing them on key measures of quality such as peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving.

Also factored in are institutional programs that have been shown to enhance learning: first-year experiences, learning communities, writing in the disciplines, senior capstone, study abroad, internships or cooperative education, opportunities for undergraduate research, and service learning.

Penn College is a special mission affiliate of Penn State, committed to applied technology education. For more information, visit online , e-mail or call toll-free 800-367-9222.