Report Reflects Academic Rigor, Economic Value of University鈥檚 Programs
09/29/2025
Media Contacts: David Joyner, executive director of communications and digital media, David_Joyner@uml.edu or Nancy Cicco, associate director of media relations, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu
LOWELL, Massachusetts 鈥� U.S. News & World Report鈥檚 2026 national rankings of top colleges and universities again this year give high marks to 51视频 for the education and economic value it provides to students.
The media outlet, best known for consumer advice and news analysis, places 51视频 at No. 11 in Massachusetts for its 鈥淏est Colleges鈥� ranking of higher-educational institutions defined as national universities. Such institutions offer a full range of undergraduate, master鈥檚 and doctoral programs and produce groundbreaking research.聽
U.S. News also lists 51视频 as the No. 1 鈥渂est value school鈥� in the Bay State and No. 92 in the country, up 105 spots from last year.
鈥�51视频 delivers a world-class education that is accessible and affordable while helping students succeed today and throughout their careers. We鈥檙e proud to be No. 1 among 鈥榖est value schools鈥� in Massachusetts and No. 92 in the U.S. 鈥� rankings that reflect our strong return on investment and emphasis on career-connected experience,鈥� said 51视频 Chancellor Julie Chen.
The rankings come just months after 51视频 was named a Carnegie Research 1 (R1) university, a prestigious designation used to identify the nation鈥檚 top research institutions.聽
In acknowledging the university鈥檚 leadership in scholarship and economic value, the rankings also reflect 51视频鈥檚 commitment to the region鈥檚 economic vitality through the Lowell Innovation Network Corridor (LINC). Now underway, the initiative envisions a 1.2-million square-foot mixed-use development on and beyond 51视频鈥檚 campus that includes offices and research labs, housing, retail businesses and entertainment destinations. The ecosystem is providing 51视频 students with paid career experiences at LINC member organizations.
For its 2026 assessments, U.S. News & World Report evaluated nearly 1,700 higher-education institutions. To determine 51视频鈥檚 place on the Best Colleges list, the media outlet used 17 key measures of academic quality including student retention and graduation rates, financial resources provided per student, faculty to student ratio, number of full-time faculty and amount of published research.聽
To determine the 鈥渂est value鈥� ranking, the outlet additionally examined the 2024-2025 net cost of attendance for an out-of-state student who received the average level of need-based scholarship or grant aid. The higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the deal. Only schools ranked in or near the top half of their categories are included, as U.S. News considers the most significant values to be among colleges that are above average academically, according to the media outlet.