December 15, 2014 - “Washington Monthly” magazine again has named Wilkes-Barre’s King’s College as one of the nation’s best master’s degree-granting institutions. King’s was the only college or university in northeastern Pennsylvania to rank among the top 200 in the survey and placed fifth among all Pennsylvania colleges and universities.

The rankings appear in the September/October issue of “Washington Monthly” magazine. King’s placed 103rd nationally among the nearly 700 colleges and universities in the final rankings, which were based on three evenly weighted selection criteria: social mobility, service, and research.

“For me, this survey is especially gratifying because it demonstrates just how effective our emphasis on values and community is with our students,” said Fr. John Ryan, C.S.C., King’s College president.

The “Washington Monthly” rankings recognize higher learning institutions for service to the community and social mobility of the student body. The magazine evaluates colleges on their effectiveness in recruiting and graduating low-income students, encouraging students to give something back to their country, and producing cutting-edge scholarship and PhDs. “These rankings are based on actual student outcomes, which for us is the most important measure of success,” said Ryan.

King’s ranked 13th nationally from among 671 institutions in the master’s degree category for community service participation and hours served. King’s is the only Wyoming Valley institution of higher learning to be named to the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll each year since it was established in 2006.

King’s also ranked 108th of master’s universities nationwide in the “Best Bang for the Buck” category.  The list was based on the percentage of students receiving Pell Grants, the graduation rate, and the rate of students defaulting on their student loans.  King’s was again the highest rated college or university in northeastern Pennsylvania.

King’s College is a Catholic College Sponsored by the Congregation of Holy Cross.