Arcadia University once again rose in the annual U.S. News & World Report rankings, released today, placing highly in national lists for study abroad and regionally for value, innovation, and social mobility. 

For the first time, the U.S. News & World Report rankings include a national category for study abroad, in which Arcadia ranks second in the nation. This list ranks universities and colleges based on student experiences, noting that the Study Abroad programs involve “substantial academic work abroad for credit—a year, a semester, or an intensive experience equal to a course—and considerable interaction with the local culture.” 

The full report saw the University improve its standing in the “Regional Universities—North” list to 42, from 55 in 2019, landing in the top 25 percent in the region. Arcadia was also included as a Best Value School, based on the percentage of students receiving need-based scholarships or grants; as a Best Undergraduate Teaching school, which identifies schools where faculty have an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching; as an A+ School for B Students; and as among the Most Innovative Schools, for innovative improvements to curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology, or facilities.

Arcadia also ranked in a new category this year, Social Mobility, which is based on economic diversity indicators that measure how well schools succeed at enrolling and graduating students who are awarded federal Pell grants.  

In the publication’s most recent graduate school rankings, Arcadia’s Physical Therapy and Physician Assistant programs remain nationally ranked.

The 2020 U.S. News & World Report’s North regional university category comprises Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, D.C. Regional universities are those that provide a full range of undergraduate majors and graduate programs, but offer few, if any, doctoral programs.