9/5/96

Contact: Ohio University: Adrie Nab 614-593-2200 (o);
614/594-417(h) ; U.S. News: Colleen Connors 202/955-2565

ATHENS, Ohio -- Ohio University has been ranked 18th by "sticker price" in the annual college guide issue of U.S. News & World Report magazine, which lists the top 50 national universities in a "Best Values" category.

According to U.S. News, sticker price rankings are based on the magazine's quality rankings of "America's Best Colleges," which will appear on newsstands Sept. 9, divided by the total tuition, required fees and room and board for 1996-97. The higher the ratio of quality to price, the better the overall value.

U.S. News ranked the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill as the top national university in the sticker price category. The other national universities in Ohio that ranked in the top 50 sticker price category were Ohio State at 30 and Miami University at 44.

"One can debate the methodology and value of rankings, but it is always good to be in a list of the nation's best," said Adrie Nab, vice president for university relations. "Any positive national publicity helps the admissions effort by putting the university's name before the prospective students and their families. However, our own institutional research tells us that academic programs and reputation, campus visits, and location and setting of the campus are making Ohio University the school of choice in Ohio."