Union College is ranked 36th among the nation's leading liberal arts colleges, up from 40th last year, in the 2006 edition of America's Best Colleges published by U.S. News & World Report.
Union also ranked 36th in the publication's best values in liberal arts education category. The College's engineering program received high marks – ranked 21st among undergraduate institutions accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology.
“Union has long been recognized as a national leader in liberal arts education, and this ranking is another clear endorsement of our commitment to provide educational excellence,” Interim President James Underwood said. “Our outstanding faculty, impressive student body as well as our distinctive initiatives – unparalleled undergraduate research opportunities, expansive international programs, unique approaches to stimulating intellectual life in and out of the classroom, significant service to our community, and our success in bridging the liberal arts and engineering disciplines – come together to make Union one of the nation's best.”
This year, Union welcomes one of its largest and strongest classes in its 210 year history. The College has seen a significant rise in the quality and quantity of applications in recent years, according to Union's Dean of Admissions Dan Lundquist.
“Beyond the important 'mere numbers' of GPA and SAT, which are the strongest ever at Union, our faculty are increasingly impressed with the accomplishments and personal qualities of these extraordinary young women and men,” Lundquist said. “We are proud that many of the nation's best and brightest are choosing Union more than ever before.”
“Our admissions success is based in large part upon the College's historic reputation, academic quality and its uniqueness – students are exposed to a rare combination of strong liberal arts programs and nationally recognized engineering programs,” Underwood added. “Our Converging Technologies initiative, which provides the academic framework for interdisciplinary research and teaching, enables students to explore a range of courses and opportunities across the curriculum that will prepare them to thrive in an ever-changing world.”
Union is also at the leading edge of creating enriched social and residential experiences for students. The College's Minerva House effort creates an environment where intellectual life is encouraged and stimulated. Union transformed seven campus homes that, in addition to their residential component, serve as centers for student and faculty interaction.
As part of its commitment to providing enriched undergraduate research opportunities to students, Union is creating collaborations with leading companies in the Tech Valley Region. In partnership with Schenectady County Community College and SuperPower, Inc., a world leading research and development firm advancing superconducting technologies, Union and its partners received in April $5 million in New York State funds to support the company's workforce development and research efforts. Additionally, Union, U-Start (a high-tech business incubator in Schenectady) and the Center for Economic Growth were recently awarded $692,000 in NYSTAR funding to support technology research and economic development at the Center's Watervliet Innovation Center.
“Both on- and off-campus, we are committed to affording our students and faculty research experiences that are rarely found in an undergraduate environment,” Underwood noted. “In addition to these recent awards, Union has received significant undergraduate research funding support from such entities as the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the U.S Department of Energy, and NASA among others.”
Union College, founded in 1795 as the first college chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, offers programs in the liberal arts and engineering to 2,000 undergraduates of high academic promise and strong personal motivation. Union has a long history of blending liberal arts and engineering; the college's Converging Technologies initiative is further bridging these disciplines and graduating students who are prepared to live and work in today's demanding and diverse world. Union's campus-wide residential effort, the Minerva Houses, brings together students and faculty for intellectual and social exchange through affiliation with seven campus living and learning environments.