View story at The News & Advance...Four Lynchburg-area colleges were recognized by U.S. News & World Report as some of the country’s best four-year, bachelor’s degree-granting institutions after a recent ranking.

U.S. News & World Report listed the University of Lynchburg and Liberty University in the top-400 of national universities out of 1,500 schools; also, Randolph College was ranked 162 and Sweet Briar 173 for national liberal arts colleges, respectively.

Alison Morrison-Shetlar, president at the University of Lynchburg, said in an emailed statement the university is “incredibly honored” to be recognized once again.

“This goes to show the power of the undeniably life-changing education students receive here at the University of Lynchburg,” she said.

In what was its 40th college ranking list, the “Best College’s Guide” is designed to connect recent high school graduates with traditional four-year programs in the U.S.; and the institutions were ranked on 17 factors with some being graduation rates, first-year retention rates, graduation rate performance and Pell grant graduation performance.

Brenda Edson, director of college relations at Randolph College, said in an email “the most important part” of a college search Randolph believes is discovering if an institution will be the right fit for a student’s personality, goals and passions.

“Rankings can help to some degree, but they are just one of many resources available to assist students and families [in finding] the school where they will fit and thrive, so we take them with a grain of salt,” she said. “For example, the college visit is by far the biggest factor for many students in determining whether a college is for them. For the most part, rankings don’t show the relationships, the community, and the feel of a school. They don’t dive into all of the nuances that help students find their perfect match. These are the things that make the biggest difference in the long run.”