ITHACA, NY — The “America’s Best Colleges” issue of “U.S. News & World Report” has ranked Ithaca College among the top 10 master’s universities in the north for the 12th consecutive year. Furthermore, the publication once again has named Ithaca as one of the top 10 “great schools, great prices,” based on offering a quality education at a reasonable cost.

Ithaca is the highest-ranking school in its category in New York State, placing at number seven in the north region for the fourth straight year. The best master’s universities category includes institutions that award a full range of undergraduate and master’s degrees but offer few, if any, doctoral programs. It is not a ranking specifically of a college’s master degree programs. “U.S. News & World Report” also ranked IC sixth for providing good value, up one spot from last year and three places from the 2007 rankings.

“Ithaca College has long been committed to excellence as a residential comprehensive college for both undergraduate and graduate students,” said Ithaca College president Thomas R. Rochon. “This affirmation of the quality of our programs is gratifying, as is the consistency of this recognition going back over a decade. In these uncertain economic times, I am most pleased by the acknowledgment that IC provides excellent value to its students.”

The rankings for the colleges and universities in Ithaca’s category are based on peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving. A total of 572 colleges and universities are included in this category, ranked within four geographic regions — North, South, Midwest and West.

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