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William Paterson University in Wayne is once again among the top-ranked schools in its region, as well as a best value school, according to U.S. News & World Report’s newly released 2024 edition of Best Colleges.
The University moved up six spots, to no. 69 from no. 75 of 166 institutions, in the Best Regional Universities-North category, marking its highest ranking in recent years. The ranking builds on gains in last year’s ranking, when William Paterson moved up 15 spots from no. 90.
William Paterson University was also named to U.S News’s Best Values Schools list in the 2024 Best Colleges edition; the ranking factors academic quality and cost after accounting for total expenses and financial need. The University was ranked no. 58, up nine spots from last year’s ranking of no. 67 in the Regional Universities-North category.
In addition, William Paterson ranks no. 21 among the same 166 regional universities in the northern United States on the Best Colleges list of top performers on social mobility, which measures how well schools graduate students with exceptional financial need. The University ranked no. 21 in the 2023 report and jumped 5 spots from no. 26 in the 2022 report.
Along with its U.S. News ranking on social mobility, William Paterson University is among the national leaders in helping its students climb the socioeconomic ladder. It ranks in the top 5 percent of 1,549 institutions in the country in the 2021 Social Mobility Index, created by CollegeNet to measure the extent to which a college or university educates more economically disadvantaged students at lower tuition and graduates them into good-paying jobs.
In addition, William Paterson tied for no. 5 of the same 166 regional universities in the 2024 Best Colleges category of “campus ethnic diversity,” which identifies colleges where “students are most likely to encounter undergraduates from racial or ethnic groups different from their own.” In last year’s edition, the University was tied for no. 6 in this category.
“We are proud of the great work William Paterson is doing to provide our students with a great education that will prepare them for successful careers and meaningful lives,” says President Richard J. Helldobler. “This is what our progress in the U.S. News and other rankings ultimately reflects, and it is what matters most to the diverse population of students—many of them first-generation and immigrant—who we serve. These are the students who are changing the social fabric of New Jersey and our nation, and I am pleased that these latest rankings signal how well we support their success.”
William Paterson is also included on the Best Colleges list of Best Colleges for Veterans, ranked at 32 in its region. The list is designed to provide data on top-ranked schools that make pursuing a college education more affordable for veterans and active-duty service members.
In addition, three of William Paterson’s undergraduate degree programs were nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report. Its nursing program was ranked no. 319 out of 656 BSN programs nationwide. The undergraduate program in business ranked no. 353 out of 522 schools nationally, and the undergraduate program in psychology ranked no. 355 out of 542 programs.
