College students want the most for their money in the current economic climate, and LSU is one of 100 institutions giving the best value, according to the Princeton Review. The University was included on the Review’s 2010 list of ‘best value colleges’ – universities that provide a good education for an affordable price. The list, compiled by the Princeton Review and USA Today, shows the 50 public and 50 private most valuable institutions based on data from the 2008-09 academic year. The top 10 public and private colleges are ranked, while the remaining institutions are listed with no order. The University is among the unranked schools. The University joins four other SEC schools on the list. The universities of Arkansas, Florida and Tennessee are unranked, while the University of Georgia is No. 7 in the public school category. The No. 1 public school is the University of Virginia. Chancellor Michael Martin said the rating shows the University is servicing its students well. ‘These rankings again show that we are giving our students great bang for their buck,’ Martin said in a news release Tuesday. The University has the lowest tuition costs of all the SEC schools included, according to the Princeton Review’s report. Martin said this means tuition could be raised while still maintaining a cheaper price. ‘While we always want to be a great value for our students, we are currently charging about $2,300 less in tuition and fees than the average at our peer institutions,’ Martin said in the release. ‘To help with recent budget cuts, we could have a raise in tuition and still be a great value and charge less than our peers.’ Herb Vincent, associate vice chancellor for University Relations, said the rating is an indication the University can increase fees without harming itself. ‘It creates the awareness that we have room to increase cost of attending LSU and still maintain our value,’ Vincent said. The University’s in-state tuition is listed in the report as $3,469. Of the SEC schools on the best value list, the most comparable tuition is the $4,373 charged by the University of Florida. Faculty Senate President Kevin Cope said the University’s presence on the list is a ‘mixed message.’ ‘On one hand, one can’t get anywhere on that list without offering a quality product,’ Cope said. But the fact tuition is so much cheaper than peer institutions could harm the educational quality as the University’s budget is cut. ‘We are priced so far below the regional average,’ Cope said. ‘We are getting a kick in the ratings from a phenomenon that is actually obstructing us from rising in the ratings.’ — Contact Ryan Buxton at [email protected]