California State University, Chico remains ranked number three among master's-level public universities in the Western United States based on the 2005 edition of "America's Best Colleges" from U.S. News & World Report magazine.

The master's-level category that U.S. News & World Report uses includes universities which offer undergraduate and master's programs, but few doctoral programs. The magazine rated 572 universities in four geographic regions in this category.

CSU, Chico was ranked third on the list for 2004, fourth in 2003, and third in 2002. CSU, Long Beach, which was number 11 in the rankings last year, was tied for third with CSU, Chico this year. Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo is ranked number one in the master's-level category for public universities, followed by Western Washington University.

"While magazine rankings are imperfect judges of a university's quality, we are nevertheless flattered by this high rating," said CSU, Chico President Paul Zingg. "Chico State's standing as one of the West Coast's finest universities is a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our faculty and staff, the quality of the students whom we attract and the success of our alumni."

U.S. News & World Report ranks schools based on 15 criteria. Among the most important are assessments by peer institutions, the percentage of freshmen who return for their sophomore year, class size and selectivity.

The rankings of all colleges and universities were posted on the U.S. News & World Report Web site today, Aug. 20. The "America's Best Colleges" newsstand book and the weekly U.S. News & World Report magazine containing the rankings are scheduled for distribution Monday, Aug. 23.

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