Southeast among Princeton Review’s 2020 ‘Best in the Midwest’

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. —Southeast Missouri State University is one of the best colleges in the Midwest according to The Princeton Review.

The education services company lists Southeast in the Best in the Midwest section of its “2020 Best Colleges: Region by Region” website feature posted at https://www.princetonreview.com/bestMWcolleges. Southeast is one of 159 schools and one of only six public institutions in Missouri named a “Best in the Midwest” school.

The Princeton Review salutes 656 colleges that it recommends over five regions: Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, West and International. The colleges that made the “Best in the Midwest” list are located in 12 Midwestern states.

“We chose Southeast and the other outstanding institutions on this list primarily for their academics,” said Robert Franek, The Princeton Review’s Editor-in-Chief. He noted that the company considered data from its survey of administrators at several hundred colleges in each region, information from staff visits to schools over the years, and the opinions of college counselors and advisors whose perspectives the company solicits. “We also consider what students enrolled at the schools reported to us on our student survey about their campus experiences,” Franek added.

“We are extremely pleased to be recognized by The Princeton Review as one of the best colleges in the Midwest,” said Dr. Carlos Vargas, president of Southeast Missouri State University. “This reaffirms what we already know about Southeast – that we are a high-quality institution with cutting-edge, innovative programs, graduating students who are prepared to meet the needs of our ever-changing communities and workplaces.”

The Princeton Review survey asks students to rate their colleges on dozens of issues and to answer questions about themselves, their fellow students and their campus life. Comments from surveyed students are quoted in the school profiles on The Princeton Review website.

Students commend Southeast for its small class sizes, personal attention and for offering a wide range of majors. The University’s education, business, nursing and performing arts programs were applauded for their high quality as were the textbook rental and scholarship programs. Students also described faculty members as “amazing” and being “very enthusiastic.”

The Princeton Review does not rank the 656 “regional best” colleges overall or by region. The 159 colleges that The Princeton Review chose for its “Best in the Midwest” 2020 list are located in 12 states: Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The Princeton Review also designated 224 colleges in the Northeast, 127 in the West, 142 in the Southeast and four in the International region as “best” in their locales on the company’s “2020 Best Colleges: Region by Region” lists. Collectively, the 656 colleges on The Princeton Review’s “regional best” lists for 2020 constitute about 22% of the nation’s 3,000 four-year colleges.