OXFORD, Ga. — Two universities with Newton County campuses recently were listed among the top institutions in the country in a national magazine's annual review.
Emory University ranks 21st among the nation’s top universities in the 2022 edition of Best Colleges from U.S. News & World Report. Emory was founded in Oxford but moved its main campus to Atlanta while keeping its Oxford campus as a two-year college.
Meanwhile, Georgia State University is ranked the No. 2 most innovative university in the country and No. 2 for best undergraduate teaching in the 2022 edition of the magazine’s Best Colleges.
Emory President Gregory L. Fenves said the university “offers a distinctive undergraduate experience, built on the breadth and rigor of an exemplary liberal arts education and elevated by the resources and opportunities of a world-class research university.
“These rankings are a reflection of the efforts of our exceptional faculty, dedicated staff, and of course, the talent and energy of our students, all of whom embody the Emory mission to serve humanity,” Fenves said.
In a new ranking this year, U.S. News cited Emory as fourth for best undergraduate nursing degree program.
Additionally, Emory's Goizueta Business School placed 14th for undergraduate business programs. Both rankings are based on surveys of deans and senior faculty from schools and departments around the country.
The rankings also list Emory as 21st among national universities offering the best value to students based on academic quality and cost. In addition, Emory is included in lists for ethnic diversity, most international students and best colleges for veterans.
"At Emory, we believe that our students learn best by taking risks. We offer an environment that challenges our students to delve deeper into what they know, and discover what they don’t know and grow personally through discovery of self and knowledge. This process allows for discoveries to be made through the intellect and the spirit. It is here that we discover who we are and who we want to be,” said Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Ravi V. Bellamkonda.
Georgia State improved its position in the categories by ranking No. 3 for both innovation and undergraduate teaching in the 2021 survey.
The Newton campus in east Newton County opened in 2007 as part of Georgia Perimeter College. Georgia State has operated the campus since it consolidated with Georgia Perimeter in 2016.
This is the fourth year in a row Georgia State has been ranked by the magazine in the top three among national universities for its “unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.”
Georgia State is the top-ranked public university in the category.
The innovation and undergraduate teaching rankings are based on a survey of presidents, provosts and admissions deans at colleges and universities across the country.
“We continue to improve our position among higher education institutions across the nation because we are focused on what matters to our students: success in the classroom and after graduation,” said Georgia State President M. Brian Blake. “Our place at the top of U.S. News’ rankings for innovation and undergraduate teaching recognizes our continued commitment to serving students and providing them with the tools and technologies they need to succeed.”
Georgia State also once again ranked highly in the Social Mobility and Academic Programs to Look For categories.
The Top Performers on Social Mobility rankings are based on how well a school advances equity among low-income families and families with stronger financial backgrounds. Georgia State ranked 11th in the category on the 2022 survey.
In the Academic Programs to Look For category, Georgia State ranked sixth for its first-year experience. The indicator measures how well a university builds into its curriculum first-year seminars or other academic programs that regularly bring small groups of students together with faculty or staff.
For the third year in a row, the university ranked fifth in the Learning Communities category. College and university presidents, chief academic officers, deans of students and deans of admissions rank these programs, which offer students opportunities to take two or more linked course as a group.
Georgia State also remains among the most diverse campuses in the nation, according to U.S. News’ diversity index, which gives only 12 institutions a higher score.
The university’s J. Mack Robinson College of Business is 49th this year, up from 53rd, in the magazine’s ranking of undergraduate business programs. Its Risk Management & Insurance program remained at fourth in the rankings. Robinson’s Computer Information Systems program ranked eighth.
The business school and program rankings are based on a survey of deans and senior faculty at institutions across the country.
