AU earns “Best Midwest” recognition from The Princeton Review
ASHLAND, Ohio – Ashland University received a “Best Midwest” distinction from The Princeton Review, indicating it is a “2026 Best College” in its geographical region. The educational services company saluted 631 colleges overall (across seven geographic zones) that it considers academically outstanding and well worth consideration in one’s college search.
The Princeton Review’s rankings are based entirely on data from surveys of students attending the schools who rate their own colleges on dozens of topics.
In The Princeton Review’s online profile of Ashland, AU is noted for “providing individual attention to each and every student,” a nod to its long-held core value “Accent on the Individual,” while “also offering the college experience, an abundance of great majors, a liberal arts education, personal growth and future success.” The author describes AU as being “located in the heart of a super-friendly and considerate Middle America” town, and academically, “there is something for everyone.”
Describing the student body, one AU student summarized that there are “a huge range of students and student interests on campus, from Greek life to theatre to community service to international students to diehard political and philosophical fans and religious conservatives. Each group manages to find people with similar interests, so no one group is alienated.”
“The colleges that make our ranking lists do so entirely as a result of their own students’ opinions of them,” stated Rob Franek, editor-in-chief of The Princeton Review. “We don’t rank colleges based on our opinion of them nor would we crown a school ‘best’ overall. It is what the students attending the colleges … tell us about their experiences at their schools that determines on which lists the schools appear. Our goal since day one … has been to provide multiple resources to help college applicants answer what is for most the toughest question in their journey to college, ‘Which college is best for me?’”
The Princeton Review, founded in 1981, is a leading educational services company that offers a range of test prep and tutoring options and provides admissions resources, including ranking lists of top colleges and schools.