The University of Minnesota Crookston is one of the best colleges in the Midwest according 

to the nationally known education services company, The Princeton Review.  It is one of 153 institutions The Princeton Review recommends in its "Best in the Midwest" section of its website feature, "2013 Best Colleges: Region by Region," that posted August 20, 2012, on PrincetonReview.com.    

"As a campus of the great University of Minnesota system, our place in the market calls us to pay close attention to quality and offer the best educational experience to our students," said Fred Wood, chancellor of the U of M Crookston.  "It's rewarding to have outside agencies such as The Princeton Review recognize the efforts of our faculty and staff and include the U of M Crookston on its list of best colleges in the Midwest.  

"It's especially timely given that we are celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Morrill Act, which established land grant universities for the public good," Wood says.  "On that note, we are and always will be committed to service to the public in terms of offering excellent programs and in terms of maintaining access and affordability for our students."

For this project, The Princeton Review asks students attending the schools to rate their own schools on several issues -- from the accessibility of their professors to quality of the campus food -- and answer questions about themselves, their fellow students, and their campus life.

The 153 colleges that The Princeton Review chose for its "Best in the Midwest" list are located in twelve states: Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. The Princeton Review also designated 222 colleges in the Northeast, 122 in the West, and 136 in the Southeast as best in their locales on the company's "2013 Best Colleges: Region by Region" lists.  Collectively, the 633 colleges named "regional best(s)" constitute about 25% of the nation's 2,500 four-year colleges. For a full listing of the 2013 Best Colleges go to www.princetonreview.com/best-regional-colleges.aspx. 

The schools in The Princeton Review's "2013 Best Colleges: Region by Region" website section are also rated in six categories by The Princeton Review. The ratings, which appear on the school profiles, are scores on a scale of 60 to 99.  The Princeton Review tallied these scores based on institutional data it obtained from the colleges in 2011-12 and/or student survey data. Review explains the criteria for each rating score on its site at www.princetonreview.com/college/college-ratings.aspx. 

The Princeton Review (www.PrincetonReview.com) is an education services company known for its test-prep courses, tutoring, books, and other student resources. Headquartered in Framingham, MA, with editorial offices in New York and locations across the U.S.A. and abroad, the Princeton Review, which is a privately held company, is not affiliated with Princeton University.

Today the University of Minnesota Crookston delivers 26 bachelor's degree programs, 18 minors, and 36 concentrations, including 10 online degrees, in the areas of agriculture and natural resources; business; liberal arts and education; and math, science and technology.  With an enrollment of 1,600 undergraduates from 25 countries and 40 states, the Crookston campus offers a supportive, close-knit atmosphere that leads to a prestigious University of Minnesota degree.  "Small Campus. Big Degree."  To learn more, visit www.umcrookston.edu.