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Kevin McCormally: I am Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's and I am here with Jane Clark, the Education Editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, to talk about Kiplinger's rankings of the best values in private colleges and universities. Jane, I know, you have been involved in this ranking project for many years, how is the Kiplinger team go about judging the best values in private colleges and universities?

Jane Clark: We consider two basic elements; the quality of the education and how much it costs. Schools that do well in both measures make it into our Top 100 colleges and universities.

Kevin McCormally: Okay, let's take the first criterion first; quality. How does Kiplinger measure the quality of these institutions?

Jane Clark: One measure is student-faculty ratio. Let me tell you about Cal Tech which is the top ranked university in our rankings. Cal Tech has a student-faculty ratio of one teacher to every three students, that's practically like getting tutor. And that 's why Cal Tech beats out several other top colleges for value in our ranking.

Kevin McCormally: Okay, another measure of quality?

Jane Clark: As if everyone knows, students benefit from being with other smart students. So, we consider the test course of incoming freshmen. Schools that do well on the test course get high marks in our ranking.

Kevin McCormally: Okay, what about cost, that's a major issue these days?

Jane Clark: Right, at some private colleges, families are paying as much as $50,000 in total cost. That's just downright scary but not every family pays the sticker price. We look at what a college charges and what it knocks off the price in financial aid.

Kevin McCormally: Can you give me an example of how financial aid effects the cost?

Jane Clark: Let's take Swarthmore, the tops rankings for private Liberal arts colleges. Swarthmore is plenty pricey. It costs $47,000 a year, but families, who are qualified for financial aid, pay an average of $20,000. That's less than half. That's why it's important to look at that financial aid component and why we could include it in our rankings.

Kevin McCormally: Jane, I have heard that some private colleges are giving financial aid even to families who are pretty well healed. Is that true?

Jane Clark: Yes, it is true. Princeton, Harvard, Yale and a slew of other schools are giving hefty amounts to families who are earning well into six figures. That's why it's important to keep track of these trends and you can do that on our college channel at kiplinger.com.

Kevin McCormally: Thank you, Jane.

Kevin McCormally: I am Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's and I am here with Jane Clark, the Education Editor of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, to talk about Kiplinger's rankings of the best values in private colleges and universities. Jane, I know, you have been involved in this ranking project for many... click to read more