Birmingham-Southern College moves up 10 slots in US News & World Report rankings

U.S. News & World Report has once again placed Birmingham-Southern College on its prestigious list of America’s top liberal arts colleges.

BSC is ranked at No. 130 — tied with five schools — and moved up 10 spots from its 2020 ranking.

The magazine’s “Best Colleges 2021” guidebook was published in October.

“In this year like no other, BSC continues to provide a stellar education and a meaningful campus experience,” BSC President Daniel B. Coleman said in a news release.

“Our students continue to make every effort to focus on their education while following health and safety protocols, and our faculty and staff have taken on extra duties and learned new ways of working,” Coleman said, referring to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The school achieved the highest ranking among the five liberal arts colleges in Alabama to be listed. The other ranked state schools are Judson College, Spring Hill College, Stillman College and Talladega College.

Now in their 36th year, the U.S. News &World Report Best Colleges rankings use 17 measures of academic quality, such as student retention, graduation rates, faculty resources and social mobility.

U.S. News & World Report creates about 50 different lists, such as “Most Innovative Schools” and “Top Public Schools.”

BSC is also one of 59 colleges included in the publication’s list of “A+ Schools for B Students (National Liberal Arts Colleges).”

This ranking is made up of schools that accept a significant number of good students with less-than-perfect test scores, Amy Bickers Abeyta, BSC Director of Communications said.

Inclusion on the list is a testament to the school’s close-knit community, personalized education and small class sizes, Abeyta said.

The college boasts a 12:1 student to faculty ratio and 25% of the classes at BSC have fewer than 10 students.

“Students who are often overshadowed in high school can find and grow into their potential here,” said David M. Eberhardt, the college’s vice president for student development. “They thrive on the Hilltop.”

Of the approximately 500 liberal arts colleges in the United States, U.S. News & World Report included 221 institutions in its new rankings.

To see the complete list, go to usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings national-liberal-arts-colleges.