JACKSON, December 11-- Union University has been selected to appear in the 15th edition of Peterson's Competitive Colleges, an annual guide to the nation's top colleges, and the fifth edition of Peterson's Choose a Christian College, a directory of the nation's top Christian campuses. Union is the only university in the Southeastern United States and one of only 11 schools nationwide listed in both Peterson's guides.
Schools listed in Peterson's Competitive Colleges represent approximately the top ten percent of American colleges and universities. Inclusion in the directory is based upon several criteria, including freshman ACT averages, high school GPA, and retention statistics. Schools are selected for the volume based on independent evaluation of these criteria.
"We look for colleges at which freshmen are, for a period of at least three years, clearly above the average in both national and regional or local terms, based on their performance on standardized tests as well as their high school records," said Michael Ditchkofsky, Vice President for Special Services at Peterson's.
"Our purpose in developing and publishing this book is to widen students' horizons by helping them look beyond the handful of nationally known institutions most highly-motivated students automatically think of when they begin the college admissions process," Ditchkofsky continued.
The 1996-97 edition of Peterson's Competitive Colleges is distributed to more than 100,000 outstanding high school juniors and seniors nationwide. The volume will also be available in bookstores, libraries, guidance offices and USIS offices around the world, as well as on-line via Dow Jones News/Retrieval, CompuServe, Dialog, and on the Internet via the World Wide Web.
Union will be featured on a profile page in the guide highlighting information drawn from Peterson's annual survey of undergraduate institutions.
Choose a Christian College is Peterson's guide to member schools of the Coalition for Christian Colleges and Universities, a Washington, D.C.-based organization of 90 colleges. The coalition is North America's primary organization devoted to serving and strengthening Christian higher education. Member schools must meet criteria consistent with mainstream evangelical denominations to meet eligibility requirements.
"Union's inclusion in Peterson's Competitive Colleges and Peterson's Choose a Christian College underscores the University's core values of academic excellence and Christian commitment," Union President David S. Dockery said. "We are grateful for these significant listings that recognize Union as one of the premier institutions in the South."
Peterson's, an information services company, is the world's leading provider of information on U.S.-accredited educational institutions and special programs. The group's publications rank among the best-selling, most respected higher education guides in the world.
Last updated on December 20, 1996.
