Princeton Review Names Bard College at Simon's Rock One of The Best Colleges in America

"Bard College at Simon’s Rock is one of the country's best institutions for undergraduate education,” The Princeton Review announcement began. The education services company is getting the word out about the new edition of its annual college guide, The Best 377 Colleges.

Only about 15% of America’s 2,500 four-year colleges and three colleges outside the U.S.A. make the list. According to the Robert Franek, the Princeton Review's Senior VP/Publisher and author of The Best 377 Colleges, the primary criterion for inclusion in the book is outstanding academics.

Making the Grade

In selecting the 377 schools, The Princeton Review gathers institutional data about schools, visits the schools over the years, collects feedback from current students, and considers the opinions of staff and a 30-member National College Counselor Advisory Board. But appearance on the Top 20 list is driven solely by students.

Simon’s Rock made it onto nine lists in The Best 377 Colleges, including: “Best Classroom Experience” and “Professors Get High Marks”. Students also put us on the lists for “Students Study the Most”, “There’s a Game?”, and “Birkenstock Wearing, Tree-Hugging, Clove-Smoking Vegetarians.”

What Students Said

Students surveyed for The Princeton Review lists agreed: “Class discussion is encouraged”, “Political activism is popular”, “Athletic facilities are great,” and “No one cheats."  They described Simon’s Rock as a “haven for young, bright minds” and commended professors for making “the difficulty and volume of course work worth it” and said “They [professors] are what is amazing about this school.”

For a complete list of categories and more information on the rankings visit www.princetonreview.com/college/college-rankings.aspx