Ozarks Again Ranked No. 1 “Best Value” in South by U.S. News

For the second consecutive year and third time in four years, University of the Ozarks has been ranked the No. 1 Best Value in the South Region in U.S. News & WorldReport's annual college rankings.

In the 2025 edition of U.S. News and World Report'sBest Colleges, released this week, U of O ranked first in the "Best Value Schools" category among the nearly 100 regional colleges in the 12-state South. The value rankings evaluate the cost of attending a university relative to the quality of the institution and takes into account such things as the percentage of students receiving need-based financial aid and the average institutional aid those students receive.

The magazine's annual late summer publication that analyzes institutions of higher education also had Ozarks ranked fourth in overall rankings among South Regional Colleges, up from seventh in last year's rankings.

Ozarks has been ranked among the top 10 in the South Region in each of the past 10 years. The overall rankings examine such criteria as academic reputation, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving.

Ozarks was also ranked No. 1 in the Best Value category in the 2022 and 2024 rankings and was ranked No. 2 in the category in the 2023 rankings.

"This latest recognition of the University's efforts in combining outstanding academics with outstanding value is testament to the wonderful work of our faculty, staff, students, alumni and supporters," said U of O President Richard Dunsworth. "We remain committed to making an Ozarks education both accessible and affordable while providing a top-notch education to students, regardless of their background or family income. That is the legacy and mission of this University."

In addition, Ozarks is ranked No. 40 in Social Mobility in the South Region. This category represents those colleges that are most successful "at advancing social mobility by enrolling and graduating large proportions of disadvantaged students awarded with Pell Grants. The vast majority of these federal grants are awarded to students whose adjusted gross family incomes are under $50,000," according to the magazine.

The publication's South Region consists of primarily undergraduate colleges and universities in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia and Virginia.