Previously ranked as the number two public liberal arts college in the South, The University of Virginia's College at Wise is now listed among the nation's top public liberal arts colleges, according to U.S. News and World Report's annual college guide.

Additionally, UVa-Wise ranked third among all national liberal arts colleges whose graduates completed their degrees while incurring the least amount of student debt.

"It is quite an honor for UVa-Wise to be ranked among the nation's leading public liberal arts colleges in the newly released study in U.S. News and World Report," said UVa-Wise Chancellor Steven Kaplan. "For a college as young as ours, this is quite an accomplishment."

Founded in 1954, UVa-Wise last year was reclassified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a national - rather than a regional - public liberal arts college. That change is reflected in the U.S. News rankings released late Thursday.

Each school's rank, within its group of peer institutions, is based on the same set of quality measures. Seventy-five percent of the ranking is based on a formula that includes objective measures of academic quality, such as graduation rates, freshman retention, class size, student/faculty ratios, full-time faculty, SAT scores, acceptance rates, and alumni giving rates. The remaining 25 percent is based on a reputational survey conducted in the early spring. The magazine surveys the president, provost and dean of admissions at each school to rate the perceived quality of the academic programs for schools in the same category, including their own.

UVa-Wise is listed among the nation's top 20 public liberal arts colleges. Only the top five colleges in that category were ranked individually. Virginia Military Institute ranked first among public liberal arts colleges followed by St. Mary's College of Maryland.

"We must never lose sight of the fact that such studies can only provide a limited measure of an institution's quality, especially in the institution's central mission, which is teaching," Kaplan said. "No matter how highly we are ranked in one of these national studies, the most important single measure of our success is that our students speak so enthusiastically about the education they are getting here."

In a recent market survey conducted by Maguire Associates, Inc., UVa-Wise students consistently cited the same attributes, which led to their decision to attend the College. A national leader in higher education assessment, the Maguire study found that UVa-Wise students value the strength of the College's faculty, the quality of instruction, the personal, family-like environment, the availability of student support, the excellent preparation for graduate school, and the College's reasonable costs and fees.

UVa-Wise ranked third among liberal arts colleges whose graduates complete their degrees while incurring the least amount of student debt. Only about 40 percent of UVa-Wise graduates leave with debt. Of those UVa-Wise graduates who do have student loans to repay, the average amount of debt is $7,994. That compares to an average debt load of $24, 512 for students at Austin College in Texas, the liberal arts college with the largest average of student debt.

"This is truly remarkable when you consider that 70 percent of our students demonstrate financial need, the largest percent at any college or university in Virginia," said Rusty Necessary, UVa-Wise Director of Admissions and Financial Aid. "Through our endowment and foundation support, we've been able to supplement the federal and state monies available to assist students with need. Our students are able to gain a quality education while incurring a very small debt load."