UW-River Falls Again Named a 'Best in the Midwest' University By The Princeton Review

August 14, 2014—For the fourth year in a row, UW-River Falls is one of the best colleges in the Midwest according to The Princeton Review. The nationally-known education services company recommends the school as one of 159 institutions in twelve Midwestern states it names to its "Best in the Midwest" list for 2015. UW-River Falls is one of four University of Wisconsin institutions named to the list, joining UW-Eau Claire, UW-Madison, and UW-Milwaukee. 

For this project, The Princeton Review asks students attending the schools to rate their own schools on several issues -- from the accessibility of their professors to the quality of their science lab facilities -- and answer questions about themselves, their fellow students, and their campus life.  Student comments in the profile on UW-River Falls are "Classes are challenging, but to the right extent," and "Professors here care about the well-being of their students, are very willing to help, and spend time in their offices for any question [and] are always available by e-mail."  

In its profile on UW-River Falls, The Princeton Review commends the university for its "Ideal setting in a small town close to the Twin Cities, which conspire to provide [students] a college experience that allows one to do all that is 'college,' yet still somehow have the comfort of feeling like they are at home." "We developed our Best Colleges: Region by Region lists to offer guidance for the growing number of students and parents now seeking colleges closer to home," said Robert Franek, Princeton Review's senior vice-president and publisher. "We selected UW-River Falls -- and the other terrific institutions on our 'regional best' lists -- primarily for their excellent academic offerings." 

The Princeton Review editors narrowed their choices based on institutional data the company collected directly from several hundred colleges in each region, staff visits to schools over the years, and the opinions college counselors and advisors whose recommendations the company invites.  

"Our selections also take into account what students at the schools report to us about their experiences at them on our 80-question student survey for this project," Franek added. "We ask every question that a prospective applicant might want to ask on a campus visit. Only schools that permit us to independently survey their students are eligible to be considered for our regional 'best' lists."  

The Princeton Review (www.PrincetonReview.com) is an education services company known for its test-prep courses, tutoring, books, and other student resources. The company is not affiliated with Princeton University and it is not a magazine. 

For more information, contact Blake Fry, special assistant to the chancellor, at 715-425-3711 or blake.fry@uwrf.edu.