Augsburg is one of the 152 institutions located in the states of Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin to be named to the list. The full list of schools was posted on on Aug. 2.

Regional best colleges are selected by The Princeton Review primarily because of the quality of academic programs. About 25 percent of the nation’s 2,500 four-year colleges are named the regional best institutions. The schools on the lists are not ranked.

The Princeton Review independently surveys students and asks them to rate their own schools on issues ranging from accessibility of their professors to the quality of campus food.

Augsburg is one of 14 colleges or universities in Minnesota to be named “Best in the Midwest” and one of 11 private colleges in the state to be recognized.

Other Minnesota institutions on the list include: Carleton College; College of St. Scholastica; Gustavus Adolphus College; Hamline University, Macalester College; Minneapolis College of Art and Design; St. Catherine University; St. Mary’s University of Minnesota; St. Olaf College; University of Minnesota-Crookston; University of Minnesota-Twin Cities; University of St. Thomas and Winona State University.

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The annual ranking considers institutional data collected by The Princeton Review, their visits to schools, and the opinions of high-school counselors. In addition, says Robert Franek, vice president for publishing, “We also take into account what each school’s customers — their students — report to us about their campus experiences at their schools on our 80-question student survey.”

What Auggie undergrads told The Princeton Review about their professors, for example, is that they “deserve a great deal of credit for creating an inviting, positive, thinking environment,” and for making the student experience feel “very personal.” Students also reported that “one of the greatest strengths of Augsburg is that it offers internships and study abroad classes to every student.”

The student survey covers a variety of topics, from the accessibility of professors to the quality of campus food, and asks students to answer questions about themselves, their fellow students, and their campus life.

Franek says that the aim of the annual roster of regional best colleges is to present “a range of institutions in each region that varies by size, selectivity, character, and locale.” All colleges named had to meet criteria for academic excellence. In addition, The Princeton Review had to be able to survey the students, either directly or with the help of college officials.

The web site’s comments tell prospective students to consider the information about best colleges as “a starting point, a tool that can help you to probe the surface and get a sense of the college experience at a particular school.”

The Princeton Review, a New York-based company, is known for its test preparation courses, books, and college admission and other education services. For more about the Best in the Midwest Colleges, go to .

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