The Princeton Review's Best-Value Public Colleges For 2011

For the third year running, the University of Virginia has been named the best value public college by the Princeton Review and USA Today.

UVA is one of five schools in Virginia to make the cut. Florida is also well-represented on the list, with the New College of Florida and the University of Florida nabbing the second and third spots.

To determine their rankings, the Princeton Review and USA Today considered data from surveys conducted at 650 competitive colleges and universities. Of these, 50 private and 50 public colleges were selected for excellence in academic strength, cost of attendance and financial aid. All financial information was provided in fall 2010, and other surveys took place between the fall of 2009 and 2010.

In their interactive list, USA Today offers a profile of each school which includes information about the school, institutional statistics, financial aid details and "the bottom line." The Princeton Review has more on methodology.

Below, check out the ten best value public colleges for 2011. Did your school make the cut? Let us know in the comments section!

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University of Virginia

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Comments

[Regina Harsanyi]

11:30 PM on 03/08/2011

PS: We also have higher retention.

[Regina Harsanyi]

11:29 PM on 03/08/2011

Why is CUNY Hunter in the top 10 again? CUNY Queens proves to be better time and time again. We have higher GPAs, better professors and I've been told time and time again we have better science programs even though we don't technically offer a "pre-med" major even though you can still take a pre-med route with better classes than any other CUNY. Ask 20 Hunter students if they like Hunter and then do the same for Queens students. I don't get it.

[Druscilla French]

06:18 AM on 03/01/2011

You posted a photo of a fraternity house as the University of North Carolina. What were you thinking?

[MomWithTwoHeads]

12:32 AM on 02/26/2011

Aren't these lists supposed to be about prestige, which is a huge number one value in where you go to university? I graduated from Chapel Hill, but live in CA now. I look at these rankings and wonder where is Berkeley? UCLA?

Wouldn't you rather be a grad of Berkeley than any on this list? So wouldn't that be the best value?

To me, with publics, there are Berkeley, Chapel Hill, Ann Arbor, then all the rest. Can't understand why prestige doesn't trump all other factors for "value".

[holierdandao]

04:42 PM on 02/27/2011

You're forgetting Virginia.

[linton]

07:35 PM on 02/25/2011

Good for William and Mary.

[1Woman4Obama]

06:00 PM on 02/25/2011

Is this a joke? Where are the UC schools?

[Ogg-the-bear]

02:21 PM on 02/25/2011

Hmm, all skools east of the mountains....oops, forgot, Princeton Review... east coast myopia. Makes sense.

[Caroline Harris]

01:30 PM on 02/23/2011

Alright UNC!!! How about them Heels!?! (c/o 06)

[jennytaylia]

11:59 AM on 02/23/2011

Good to see my alma mater, UVa, represented! I can tell you that I was accepted by both UVa and the University of Richmond, and it was less expensive to attend UVa and live on campus than it was to attend UR and live at home.

[raechel]

10:28 AM on 02/23/2011

Wow. I didn't really know much about the New College of Florida, so I checked out the website, and then of course got lost in the course catalog. Wow again. This is how college should be done. Design your own degree, decide what courses you should take. And they were all fabulous. I wish I had sent my kids there.

[GraphicMatt]

10:55 AM on 02/23/2011

I know a couple people that went to school there and they absolutely loved it there. Said it was the most intellectually challenging and stimulating time of their lives.

[Jon Polm]

03:43 AM on 03/05/2011

Check out Evergreen State College...just like New College, but much cheaper and in the rainforest of Washington State (BEAUTIFUL)

[me again]

10:14 AM on 02/23/2011

Just wait for further cuts in education and watch the tuition rise.

[b-dob]

11:48 AM on 03/01/2011

Yeah, nobody should ever have to pay for anything.

[bike2055]

03:49 AM on 03/08/2011

Obviously you did not pay much for your education.

[raechel]

10:10 AM on 02/23/2011

Go Blue!

[meritocracy]

12:36 PM on 03/24/2011

"Sing to the colors that float in the light,
Hurrah for the Yellow and Blue..."

[NeoPublius]

07:55 AM on 02/23/2011

These rankings always omit western state universities. There are some truly excellent schools that consistently get left off. I'll tell you this, I don't envy Princeton for being the best University in New Jersey! Enough said.

[raechel]

10:09 AM on 02/23/2011

No, the western state universities aren't "omitted." They don't make the cut on this list because they don't generally have the large endowments that allow them to provide a great deal of financial aid. Remember, this list is about "value" -- a combination of academic excellence and affordability. If you look at lists of the top schools in the country, Stanford, Cal Tech, U Cal Berkeley, and others consistently make the top ten or twenty-five.

Not sure how Princeton made its way into your discussion, being private. It's a pretty fabulous place, though, for people who are serious about their pursuit of an education.

[UDKM2010]

07:52 AM on 02/23/2011

UVA. Easters back in the day.

[senseandnonsense]

08:54 AM on 02/23/2011

You made me smile.

[nClar]

04:32 AM on 02/23/2011

Proud to be a New College of Florida alum! Congratulations on the number 2 ranking! Fantastic education at an amazingly low cost. I graduated almost debt-free, got accepted to my first choice grad program, and have enjoyed an excellent and varied career. If had it do again I'd make the same choice. March on Null Set!!