Park University designated a 2014 Best Value School

Park University was recently presented with one of only twenty Best Value School trophies by University Research & Review.   UR&R, as it is known, is an organization created by former college presidents, provosts, professors and CEOs to uncover and recognize good but little known and reasonably priced American colleges and universities.
 
“We examined almost three thousand colleges and universities and measured each against criteria established by our higher education experts,” said UR&R founder Joseph Schmoke, himself a former university CEO.  Net cost to attend a school was the first hurdle, and most were judged too expensive according to Schmoke.  The UR&R researchers then looked for unique qualities such as special programs for specific groups like those serving in the military.  “The toughest hurdle for many institutions was determining whether students actually liked the school they were attending.  If the majority of student comments were negative a school was rejected,” Schmoke explained.
 
When asked how the UR&R process was different from that used by U.S. News and World Report to select their lists of so-called top schools, Schmoke said his team looked beyond the simple metrics used by most organizations to arbitrarily rank schools.  “There has to be something special about a school, the students have to love it, and the top administrators must exhibit a passion for their mission,” said Schmoke.  “We do a thorough job checking and if one of these qualities is absent we reject the school.”  He noted that Park University met the test on all counts and is one of only twenty institutions to be designated a 2014 Best Value School by UR&R.
 
Park University has a beautiful main campus near Kansas City, but also has campuses in Texas and California, and boasts forty education centers, many on military installations. As a Military-Friendly institution, Park University has a growing enrollment of those currently serving on active duty.  It also claims students from all fifty states and 103 countries.  They have accomplished this by providing reasonably priced degree programs that appeal to a wide segment of the population.  These attributes are confirmed by, and reflected in, the 2014 Best Value School award from UR&R.

Contact Information

Joseph Schmoke

CEO

University Research & Review LLC

Contact via E-mail