U. ranked 14th for need-based tuition award

When good news rains, it tends to pour. Or so it seems, according to the latest U.S. News and World Report survey, which just rated the University 14th in America's "best values" for discounted university tuition prices. Last week, the same magazine ranked the University 12th in its annual quality survey, a jump of four notches over last year's rating. Ranked fourth in the Ivy League with an average need-based grant of $12,739, the University has left its former "runner-up" status -- between 25th and 50th place -- in the past. The "Best Values" survey, topped by the California Institute of Technology, Rice University and the University of Rochester, ranks both the best sticker prices and best discount tuition prices for 229 of the country's best colleges. The University was once again conspicuously absent from the list of best "sticker prices," which compares quality to the price of tuition. The rating for the "sticker price" was determined by taking the overall score from last week's survey and dividing it by the total cost of tuition, fees and room and board for the 1994-95 academic year. "We can't be all things to all people," said Admissions Dean Willis Stetson. "We're a high priced institution with high quality education." But the University's aggressive financial aid program has increased the diversity of its incoming student body, he added. The University's aid program is reflected in the survey's "discounted price," which is determined by dividing the overall quality score by the cost paid by the average student receiving a need-based grant from the university. The survey also reveals that 40 percent of University students received grant aid, none of which is based on scholastic merit. The average discount cost for University students is $13,491, and the average total discount was listed at 49 percent. But Stetson was quick to add that statistical interpretation must be understood within the context of the particular survey. "In my [recruiting] travels, I don't hear any comments about U.S. News surveys," he said. "But it's encouraging to see ourselves in an improved position." Celeste James, a spokesperson for U.S. News and World Report, said she believes students and parents do read and attempt to interpret the surveys. "I think the U.S. News college guide is widely recognized, increasingly so each year," James said.