Elon is named a best-run college with one of the nation's most beautiful campuses in the 2014 edition of the Princeton Review college guide.
Elon University earns top marks in four categories in the 2014 edition of The Princeton Review’s “The Best 378 Colleges” guidebook, which was released Aug. 5. Elon is listed #6 on the list of the nation’s “best-run colleges,” with a #9-ranked study abroad program, a top-15 college theater program and one of the nation’s most beautiful campuses.
In responding to a survey, Elon students told The Princeton Review that the essence of the university is about “big-school opportunities with a small-school community.”
“The Best 378 Colleges,” is one of the top-selling college guides, profiling only about 15 percent of the nation’s four-year colleges that are the best for undergraduate education. The guide includes ranking lists of top-20 schools in 62 categories.
The lists are entirely based on The Princeton Review’s survey of 126,000 students (about 333 per campus on average) attending the colleges in the book and not on The Princeton Review’s opinion of the schools. The 80-question survey asks students to rate their own schools on several topics and report on their campus experiences at them.
Elon students said their “personable” and “engaging” professors are both “enthusiastic about their fields and helping students.” They also praised the campus culture. “I felt an instant comfort when I stepped on campus,” said one student. “At other schools I really felt like a visitor, but at Elon I felt like I belonged there.”
Elon students described themselves as “highly motivated, driven and engaged.” The Princeton Review writes that “on this ‘hardworking’ campus, you’ll find students are ‘passionate about their studies’ and ‘take their scholarship very seriously.'”
Elon students in the survey gave high marks to the university’s computer facilities, the low cost of living and the availability of internship opportunities.
In its “Inside Word” section, Princeton Review notes that Elon has become increasingly competitive for admissions. “To be successful, it’s important to have chosen a rigorous high school curriculum … In addition, admissions officers seek out students who have demonstrated leadership savvy.”
This is the 11th year in a row that Elon has appeared in the Princeton Review’s “Best Colleges” guide.
The Princeton Review’s “Best-Run Colleges” list includes the following:
1. Claremont McKenna College
2. Bowdoin College
3. Rice University
4. U.S. Coast Guard Academy
5. Pomona College
6. Elon University
7. University of Southern California
8. Wheaton College
9. Princeton University
10. United States Military Academy
11. Kansas State University
12. Washington University in St. Louis
13. Brigham Young University
14. Southern Methodist University
15. Centre College
16. Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
17. Middlebury College
18. Vanderbilt University
19. Stanford University
20. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The Princeton Review has posted the school profiles and ranking lists in “The Best 377 Colleges” at PrincetonReview.com. The Princeton Review (www.PrincetonReview.com) is an education services company known for its test-prep courses, tutoring, books, and other student resources. Headquartered in Framingham, MA, the Company is not affiliated with Princeton University.