U.S. News & World Report ranks Elon University #5 among 130 southern master's-level universities in its 2006 "America's Best Colleges" guide. This is Elon's highest ranking ever in the nation's most widely read survey of quality in higher education. Details...
In addition, Elon’s academic programs were mentioned more often than any other school in the nation in the U.S. News survey of the nation’s top college administrators. College presidents, chief academic officers and chief admissions officers cited Elon for excellence in the following programs: first-year experiences, study abroad, internships, undergraduate research, learning communities, service learning and senior capstone experiences.
As the top North Carolina school in the regional rankings, Elon earns outstanding scores for academic reputation, student retention and graduation rates. These are the top 10 master’s-level southern universities:
1. Rollins College (Fla.)
2. James Madison University (Va.)
3. Samford University (Ala.)
4. Stetson University (Fla.)
5. Elon University
6. Loyola University New Orleans (La.)
7. The Citadel (S.C.)
8. University of Mary Washington (Va.)
9. Mercer University (Ga.)
10. (tie) Centenary College of Louisiana
College of Charleston (S.C.)
Elon has the fourth-highest academic reputation among southern master’s-level universities and the third-highest rates for freshman retention and graduation.
U.S. News & World Report’s survey of top college administrators is called “Programs to Look For.” Respondents are asked to nominate stellar examples in eight categories. The schools mentioned most frequently are cited by the magazine for excellence, and Elon received recognition in seven of the eight categories. No other school made as many lists. Below is the full U.S. News & World Report “Programs to Look For” lists that include Elon:
INTERNSHIPS/CO-OPS
Alverno College (WI)
Antioch College (OH)
Berea College (KY)
Cal Poly–San Luis Obispo
Drexel University (PA)
Elon University (NC)
Georgia Institute of Technology
Kettering University (MI)
Northeastern University (MA)
Portland State University (OR)
Rochester Inst. of Technology (NY)
University of Cincinnati
SENIOR CAPSTONE
Allegheny College (PA)
Alverno College (WI)
Carleton College (MN)
College of Wooster (OH)
Duke University (NC)
Elon University (NC)
Harvard University (MA)
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology
Portland State University (OR)
Princeton University (NJ)
Reed College (OR)
Southern Illinois U.–Edwardsville
Swarthmore College (PA)
Truman State University (MO)
University of Chicago
STUDY ABROAD
Arcadia University (PA)
Beloit College (WI)
Butler University (IN)
Carleton College (MN)
Central College (IA)
Dartmouth College (NH)
Dickinson College (PA)
Duke University (NC)
Earlham College (IN)
Elon University (NC)
Georgetown University (DC)
Goshen College (IN)
Kalamazoo College (MI)
Macalester College (MN)
Michigan State University
Middlebury College (VT)
New York University
Stanford University (CA)
St. Olaf College (MN)
Syracuse University (NY)
Univ. of Minnesota–Twin Cities
University of Notre Dame (IN)
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH/CREATIVE PROJECTS
Amherst College (MA)
Brown University (RI)
California Institute of Technology
Calvin College (MI)
Carleton College (MN)
Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
College of Wooster (OH)
Davidson College (NC)
Duke University (NC)
Elon University (NC)
Furman University (SC)
Grinnell College (IA)
Harvard University (MA)
Harvey Mudd College (CA)
Hope College (MI)
Johns Hopkins University (MD)
Massachusetts Inst. of Technology
Oberlin College (OH)
Princeton University (NJ)
Reed College (OR)
Stanford University (CA)
SUNY–Stony Brook
Swarthmore College (PA)
Truman State University (MO)
University of California–Berkeley
University of California–Irvine
Univ. of California–Los Angeles
University of Delaware
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
U. of North Carolina–Asheville
U. of North Carolina–Chapel Hill
University of Washington
Univ. of Wisconsin–Eau Claire
Univ. of Wisconsin–Madison
Williams College (MA)
Yale University (CT)
LEARNING COMMUNITIES
Alverno College (WI)
Appalachian State University (NC)
Bowling Green State University (OH)
Elon University (NC)
Evergreen State College (WA)
Georgia State University
Indiana University–Bloomington
Indiana U.-Purdue U.–Indianapolis
Iowa State University
Kennesaw State University (GA)
Miami University–Oxford (OH)
Michigan State University
Portland State University (OR)
Santa Clara University (CA)
St. John’s College (MD)
St. John’s College (NM)
Syracuse University (NY)
Temple University (PA)
Univ. of Maryland–College Park
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Univ. of Missouri–Columbia
University of Texas–Austin
University of Washington
Univ. of Wisconsin–Madison
Wagner College (NY)
FIRST-YEAR EXPERIENCES
Alverno College (WI)
Amherst College (MA)
Appalachian State University (NC)
Arizona State University
Augsburg College (MN)
Ball State University (IN)
Beloit College (WI)
Bowling Green State University (OH)
Brevard College (NC)
California State U.–Long Beach
College of the Holy Cross (MA)
Drury University (MO)
Duke University (NC)
Eckerd College (FL)
Elon University (NC)
Evergreen State College (WA)
Grinnell College (IA)
Indiana University–Bloomington
Indiana U.-Purdue U.–Indianapolis
James Madison University (VA)
Kalamazoo College (MI)
Kennesaw State University (GA)
Lawrence University (WI)
North Carolina State U.–Raleigh
Ohio State University–Columbus
Portland State University (OR)
Princeton University (NJ)
Stanford University (CA)
Texas A&M Univ.–College Station
United States Military Academy (NY)
Univ. of Maryland–College Park
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Univ. of Minnesota–Twin Cities
U. of North Carolina–Asheville
U. of North Carolina–Chapel Hill
University of Notre Dame (IN)
University of Puget Sound (WA)
Univ. of South Carolina–Columbia
University of Washington
Valparaiso University (IN)
Wagner College (NY)
Willamette University (OR)
William Jewell College (MO)
SERVICE LEARNING
Alverno College (WI)
Berea College (KY)
Brown University (RI)
California State University–Monterey Bay
Calvin College (MI)
DePaul University (IL)
Earlham College (IN)
Elon University (NC)
Indiana U.-Purdue U.–Indianapolis
Marquette University (WI)
Portland State University (OR)
Stanford University (CA)
Trinity College (CT)
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
University of Notre Dame (IN)
University of Pennsylvania
University of Utah
Vanderbilt University (TN)
Warren Wilson College (NC)