CULLOWHEE – Western Carolina University’s online bachelor’s degree programs have been listed among the nation’s best options for veterans in a set of rankings released recently by U.S. News & World Report.
The magazine ranked WCU at No. 12 on a list of 69 schools offering the “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs for Veterans.” Now in their second year, the rankings are designed to help veterans identify high-quality online degree programs that suit their educational needs.
“Veterans and active-duty service members face unique challenges as students, from transitioning between bases and grappling with deployment to balancing work and family life upon return,” said Robert Morse, director of data research for U.S. News. The ranked programs “are high-quality programs that also offer educational benefits and flexibility for veterans pursuing a degree,” he said.
One of the requirements for universities to be listed in the new rankings is that they must have been awarded a numerical rank in U.S. News’ overall 2014 listing of the nation’s best online programs, which were released earlier this year. WCU’s online bachelor’s programs were ranked No. 34 out of 205 schools evaluated on that list, and no other institution of higher education in the state ranked higher.
Briana Ford, WCU’s director of military student services, said her office and the university’s faculty are continuously searching for ways to improve military students’ experiences at WCU and to provide them with more accessibility to higher education. “We are thrilled that our programs have received this national recognition,” she said.
Info: Ford (866) 928-4723 or blford@wcu.edu
– WCU
