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Simmons College Named a "Best College" by U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review

BOSTON (August 22, 2006) — Simmons College has been named a "Best College" in its category in the 2007 U.S.News & World Report rankings of "America's Top Colleges." Simmons also is named in the 2007 Princeton Review "Best 361 Colleges," an honor held by only 15% of the four-year undergraduate colleges in America.

Simmons College President Susan Scrimshaw said, "Everyone in the Simmons College community is honored and delighted that we are recognized by not only one, but two, national college guidebooks as a leading institution of higher education."

U.S.News & World Report, often cited as the premier college-ranking publication, placed Simmons in the top tier of schools in its category of masters-level universities in the northern United States.

Being selected as a "Best College" is determined by factors such as a school's academic reputation, graduation and retention rate, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving rate.

The Princeton Review editors said the schools included in their guidebook were chosen primarily for their "outstanding academics." Inclusion was based on their survey of 115,000 students attending the colleges; campus visits; and opinions of independent college counselors, students, and parents.

In their summary of Simmons College, the Princeton Review editors noted the professors' high level of accessibility to students, the school's location in Boston's cultural neighborhood, its sense of community, and its "bountiful scholarship program" as some of the reasons to make Simmons "well worth considering."

The guidebook quoted Simmons students as saying:

"It may sound cheesy, but the school is really about helping students find their voice…Professors treat everyone with respect, dignity, and compassion…."

"We feel teachers are actually on our side, ready to help with almost anything…The school places a high premium on making sure everyone feels comfortable…By the time we graduate, we're far more self-confident."

The editors said their survey found that students "like coming home to Simmons…they grow to love the school."

Simmons College (www.simmons.edu) is a private university located in the heart of Boston. It has undergraduate programs for women and graduate programs for women and men. Founded more than a century ago, Simmons was the first woman's college in the nation to offer women liberal arts training and career preparation.