Purchase College, SUNY Ranked Among Top Colleges by U.S. News & World Report's 2014 Edition of Best Colleges

(Purchase, New York …September 10, 2013) -- Purchase College, SUNY was named one of the “Top 10 Public Liberal Arts Colleges in the Nation” by the U.S. News & World Report's 2014 edition of Best Colleges, which annually ranks institutions of higher education in an effort to help thousands of parents trying to determine which schools best suit their college-bound children. This high accolade comes on the heels of Purchase being listed in the 2014 edition of The Fiske Guide to Colleges , and in The Princeton Review’s 2014 edition of its annual college guide, The Best 378 Colleges.

According to the 2014 U.S. News & World Report rankings, Purchase is one of only two public institutions in New York to make the first-tier list of 180 best liberal arts colleges in the country.

Purchase College is among a small handful of institutions to pair conservatory training in the arts with academically competitive liberal arts and science programs. Students receive a hands-on, intense and eclectic academic experience at the college, which is located 25 miles north of New York City. Most classes are conducted as seminars, and students are encouraged to work closely with faculty, whether in labs, on stage, in studios, or in the field. Purchase College also boasts an impressive list of highly successful alumni that includes editors, authors, physicians, artists, performers, teachers and clinical psychologists.

“When we look at how Purchase is consistently recognized by these prestigious national ranking systems, we see the strength of our mission revealed. Ours is an institution driven to advance open-minded engagement, academic excellence, and creative process. The environment here is unique and supportive—dedicated to ensuring our students’ academic and personal success, as well as opening doors to professional opportunities,” says Thomas J. Schwarz, president of Purchase College, SUNY.

Purchase College's School of the Arts includes the Conservatories of Dance, Music, and Theatre Arts, and School of Art+Design, while liberal arts and sciences programs are offered in the Schools of Film and Media Studies, Humanities, and Natural and Social Sciences, and in interdisciplinary BA programs. All professors either work professionally in their academic fields or conduct research.

Purchase College was founded in 1967 by Governor Nelson Rockefeller. His aspirations for Purchase were to combine on one campus conservatory training in the visual and performing arts with programs in the liberal arts and sciences. Today, Purchase College, SUNY is a community of students, faculty, and friends where open-minded engagement with the creative process leads to a lifetime of intellectual growth and professional opportunity. For more information about the College, visit www.purchase.edu.

Purchase College is part of the State University of New York (SUNY). SUNY is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating nearly 468,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses with nearly 3 million alumni around the globe. 

“As we continue to work with Governor Cuomo to position SUNY and New York to lead in affordability, access, and quality, and President Obama puts these issues into focus nationally, we are proud to be recognized and ranked favorably by U.S. News & World Report,” said SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. “Congratulations to Purchase College and the many campuses representing SUNY on this list.”