Belmont lauded as ‘Up and Comer’ and for ‘Strong Commitment to Teaching’
Belmont University landed at No. 7 on U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings of America’s Best Colleges. Announced today, Belmont placed in the Top 10 of the Regional Universities-South listing for the third consecutive year and was also lauded for the fourth year in a row as a top “Up-and-Comer,” indicating the university has made “promising and innovative changes in the areas of academics, faculty, student life, campus or facilities.” Moreover, Belmont was praised by its peers for its “unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.”
Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher said, “I am both humbled and honored to be president of Belmont University. These rankings are meaningful to me because they recognize the immense dedication and talents of Belmont’s faculty, staff, students, administrators and trustees who commit themselves daily to making this institution one of the finest in the country.”
In the Best Regional Universities-South category, Belmont is again the highest-ranked university of the 15 ranked Tennessee institutions and in the top seven of the 127 schools included from the South. On some of the most important indicators used to determine the ranking, Belmont has improved over the previous year in its freshman retention and graduation rates. Other regional institutions in the Top 10 include Rollins College, Elon University, Stetson University, Samford University, The Citadel and James Madison University.
Provost Dr. Thomas Burns added, “Though I have only been part of the Belmont community since January, I have admired the high quality of Belmont’s academic programs and the faculty’s commitment to teaching for many years. I am grateful for the opportunity to work with colleagues who are passionate about engaging Belmont students in transformative learning every day. Receiving recognition like this from our peers around the country is both a recognition of our commitment to excellence and a measure of the quality of our students, faculty and staff.”
At the start of the semester Belmont reached a record-breaking enrollment number for the eleventh straight year with approximately 6,400 students on campus, representing an eight percent increase since last year. Moreover, the incoming freshmen’s credentials continue to increase in strength with an average ACT score of 26.3 for the Class of 2015. In addition, 33 percent of new freshmen at Belmont were in the top 10 percent of their graduating class, and 61 percent were in the top quarter.
In addition to the Class of 2015, Belmont also welcomed its charter class to the College of Law last month. A total of 130 students are enrolled for the program’s inaugural year, beating projected goals by nearly 30 percent. Moreover, the strength of the initial class has exceeded expectations as well with incoming students holding a median LSAT score of 154.
