Houghton College Named A "Best In The Northeast" College By The Princeton Review On Its Website And Book "The Best Northeastern Colleges - 2010 Edition"

HOUGHTON, N.Y. – Houghton College is one of the best colleges and universities in the Northeast United States according to The Princeton Review.  The education services company selected the school as one of 218 institutions it profiles in its "Best in the Northeast" section on its website feature 2010 Best Colleges Region by Region that posted July 27, 2009 on www.PrincetonReview.com.   It also profiles the school in its book, "The Best Northeastern Colleges: 2010 Edition" (Random House / Princeton Review Books, On Sale Date August 4, 2009, $16.99).   

Says Robert Franek, Princeton Review's V.P., Publishing, "We chose Houghton College and the other terrific schools we recommend as our 'regional best' colleges primarily for their excellent academic programs.   We also work to have our roster of 'regional best' colleges feature a range of institutions by size, selectivity, character and locale.  We choose the schools based on institutional data we collect from several hundred schools in each region, our visits to schools over the years, and the opinions of independent and high school-based college advisors whose recommendations we invite.  We also take into account what each school’s customers – their students – report to us about their campus experiences at them on our 80-question student survey."   

The 218 colleges The Princeton Review chose for its "Best in the Northeast" website designations and “The Best Northeastern Colleges” book are located in eleven states: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont and the District of Columbia.   On its website 2010 Best Colleges Region by Region feature, The Princeton Review also designated 158 colleges in the Midwest, 123 in the West, and 141 in the Southeast as "regional best" colleges. The 640 colleges named "regional best(s)" represent about 25% of the nation's 2,500 four-year colleges.  

The Princeton Review survey for this project asks students 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.  Actual comments from surveyed students pepper each Princeton Review college profile on its website and in the book.   Some student comments quoted in the profile on Houghton College are:  "an academically –challenging experience complemented by a Christian atmosphere and dedication -more-   to creating scholar servants" and "Houghton offers a wide variety of groups and organizations to be involved with, ranging from rock climbing and paddle sports to Student Government and Evangelicals for Social Activism to Gadfly. Life at Houghton is never dull and there are always people around willing to talk over a cup of coffee or try anything fun, crazy, and exciting." The profiles also include a "Survey Says. . ." list that reports topics about which students surveyed at the school were in highest agreement.   Among those in the "Survey Says" list for Houghton College:  "Students get along with local community" and "musical organizations are popular."  

The Princeton Review does not rank the colleges in its 2010 Best Colleges Region by Region or in its "The Best Northeastern Colleges" book.  Unlike The Princeton Review's annual college guide "The Best 371 Colleges,"  "The Best Northeastern Colleges" book does not have ranking lists based on student surveys.    

The profiles of all schools featured in The Princeton Review’s 2010 Best Colleges Region by Region website section include college ratings.  The ratings are scores on a scale of 60 to 99 that The Princeton Review tallies in several categories based on institutional data provided by the colleges in 2008-09 and/or student survey data.   

The rating categories (and scores Houghton College received on each) include: Academics (88), Admissions Selectivity (92), Financial Aid (77), and Quality of Life (87). The Princeton Review site has an area titled "User's Guide to Our College Ratings" that explains the criteria for each of its ratings.   

"The Best Northeastern Colleges -- 2010 Edition" is the sixth edition of the book and part of a line of 165 Princeton Review books published by Random House.    

The Princeton Review (www.PrincetonReview.com) is known for its tutoring and classroom test preparation courses, books, and college and graduate school admission services.  Its corporate headquarters is in Framingham, MA, and editorial offices are in New York City.  It is not affiliated with Princeton University and it is not a magazine.