Nonprofit Colleges Online, a website devoted to promoting nonprofit online colleges and universities, has published another of its “Students Before Profits Award” rankings, this time focused on online Master’s in Engineering programs.
Students Before Profits Award
The “Students Before Profits Award” series of rankings attempts to counteract online education’s negative reputation fostered by the exploitative practices of some for-profit online education companies by highlighting online schools that put “students before profits and education before the bottom line.” To be considered for an award, programs must be offered by a regionally accredited nonprofit college or university. Programs are then ranked according to their affordability.
According to Brett Gershon, the lead editor of the ranking, “Professionals with advanced knowledge in technical fields are in increasing and unprecedented demand.” He goes on to explain that because we live in a world where the technological landscape continues to shift at rapid rates and in unpredictable ways, professionals who are not only trained in current trends, but also can adapt their work to these changes will always be needed to fill advanced positions in a very wide range of fields. “Choosing to pursue advanced training in one of these or other engineering specializations can provide significant return and may increase your starting salary by as much as $10,000,” says Gershon.
The University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Ark. takes first place in the ranking with a total tuition of around $7,000. The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology in Rapid City, S.D. and Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa come in second and third, respectively.
Other colleges and universities awarded include (in alphabetical order):
Arizona State University – Phoenix, AZ
Auburn University – Auburn, AL
Capitol Technology University – Laurel, MD
Clemson University – Clemson, South Carolina
Colorado State University – Fort Collins, CO
Drexel University – Sacramento, CA
Florida International University – Miami, FL
Kansas State University – Manhattan, KS
Lehigh University – Bethlehem, PA
Michigan Technological University – Houghton, MI
Milwaukee School of Engineering – Milwaukee, WI
Mississippi State University – Starkville, MS
Missouri University of Science and Technology – Rolla, MO
New Jersey Institute of Technology – Newark, NJ
New Mexico State University – Las Cruces, NM
New York Institute of Technology – New York, NY
Norwich University – Northfield, VT
Montana Tech – Butte, MT
Oakland University – Detroit, MI
Ohio State University – Columbus, OH
Ohio University – Athens, OH
Oklahoma State University – Stillwater, OK
Pennsylvania State University – University Park, PA
Rowan University – Glassboro, NJ
Rutgers University – New Brunswick, NJ
Texas A&M University – Kingsville, TX
Texas Tech University – Lubbock, TX
University of Alabama – Birmingham, AL
University of Alabama – Huntsville, AL
University of California – Los Angeles, CA
University of Cincinnati – Cincinnati, OH
University of Colorado – Boulder, CO
University of Colorado – Colorado Springs, CO
University of Florida – Gainesville, FL
University of Illinois – Chicago, IL
University of Illinois – Urbana/Champaign, WA
University of Louisville – Louisville, KY
University of Maryland – College Park, MD
University of Nebraska – Lincoln, NB
University of North Carolina – Charlotte, NC
University of Toledo – Toledo, OH
University of Virginia – Charlottesville, VA
University of Washington – Seattle, WA
Villanova University – Philadelphia, PA
Western New England University – Springfield, MA
Wright State University – Fairborn, OH
Youngstown State University – Youngstown, OH
Nonprofit Colleges Online is an independent guide to nonprofit online education. In addition to the Students Before Profits Award rankings, the site publishes a number of other resources to help prospective students learn about and connect with schools where they can get a quality online education that puts their needs and success first.
Source: Nonprofit Colleges Online press release