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Here are just a few highlights of recent achievements by USC students, as well as a few current rankings. Recently, Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine named the University of South Carolina as one of the “100 Best Values in Public Education.” That’s not the only list you’ll find us on— U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of South Carolina as one of the best national public institutions. When your son or daughter attends Carolina, you’ll find that excellence doesn’t have to be expensive.

Student Accomplishments

Since the Office of Fellowships and Scholar Programs was established in 1994, University students have won about 350 national awards, earning approximately $9.9 million for advanced academic study. Included are Marshall, Rhodes, Truman, National Science Foundation, Fulbright, Goldwater, Madison, Cooke, and Javits Scholars, among others. During the 2005-06 academic year alone, USC students won 43 awards valued at more than $1.3 million.

William Frierson and Tim Frisby, both senior advertising majors, were each named the Most Promising Minority Students by the American Advertising Federation. Both students were selected from a national pool of candidates based in their academics, leadership, community and organizational service.

Asma Samir Jabar, a junior International Studies/Anthropology major, has been named a 2007 Harry S. Truman Scholar. The scholarship, worth $30,000, has been given to a Carolina student every year for the past five years. Jabar plans to use the scholarship to obtain a joint degree in law and master’s of public health, integrating both areas with refugee studies.

Fahmin Basher, a junior double majoring in Chemical Engineering and Biological Sciences, and Elizabeth “Beth Ann” Bell, a Geology major, have been named 2007 Barry M. Goldwater Scholars. They, along with 317 students in the math, science and engineering fields, were selected from a national pool of 1,110 applicants. The one and two year scholarships will amount to $7,500 a year. Tyler Ray and Xiaoyi “Tina” Zhang were awarded an Honorable Mention in the competition. The Goldwater Scholarship is awarded nationally to sophomores and juniors pursuing a bachelors’ degree in natural sciences, mathematics or engineering with intent to pursue a career in research and/or college-level teaching.

Rankings

The University of South Carolina is ranked No. 54 in the nation among public universities, according to the fall 2006 rankings from U.S. News & World Report. Among the criteria in the ranking of universities are acceptance and graduation rates, retention, class size, faculty resources, SAT scores, and alumni giving.

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching has designated the University of South Carolina as an institution of “very high research activity.” USC is one of 62 public and 32 private research institutions—and the only university in South Carolina—to earn the distinction.

The University of South Carolina is the state flagship university with the highest percentage of African-American student enrollment in the nation. Research by the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education shows African-American students made up 14.7 percent of USC's enrollment in 2004, the latest year available. The JBHE also ranks USC eighth in the nation in percentage of African-American faculty at a state flagship university with 4.3 percent.

U.S. News & World Report's college and graduate school guides rank the Moore School of Business No. 1 in the nation for its undergraduate international business program (fall 2006) and No. 1 among public universities—No. 2 overall—for its graduate IB program (spring 2007). The Moore School has 10 consecutive No. 1 rankings for the undergraduate program and 18 consecutive years with the No. 1 or No. 2 overall ranking for the graduate program. The school's overall ranking from the magazine is 25th among public universities in “Best Business Programs.”

In its latest guide (fall 2006), U.S. News & World Report ranked USC's University 101 program for freshmen in the category “Programs to Look For,” among those at Duke, Dartmouth, Princeton, and Stanford universities.

The School of Hotel, Restaurant, & Tourism Management is ranked ninth in the nation by the Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Education.

The University's Marine Science program (marine biology, biological oceanography, and physical oceanography) has been ranked in the top 10 nationally in the most recent Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index.

Carolina has been recognized in Kaplan Publishing's “The Unofficial, Unbiased Guide to the 328 Most Interesting Colleges, 2004 Edition“ as a top school in the following areas: schools that offer the best value for tuition dollar, and schools with the most beautiful campus in urban setting.

The University has been recognized for leadership in the field of student character and development in “The Templeton Guide: Colleges that Encourage Character Development,“ a guidebook for students, parents, and educators.

The University is included in Peterson's Competitive Colleges: Top Colleges for Top Students 2008 edition.

See more highlights of the University of South Carolina.

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