2010 "Best Value" Colleges Ranking Puts Univ. Of Virginia First

Princeton Review and USA Today released their annual U.S. college rankings. The creators of the survey say they want to help U.S. students and their families make "every education dollar count" and find the best value for their children. The rankings include 100 college names: 50 four-year public colleges and 50 four-year private colleges. Thirty different factors were taken into consideration from academics to education expenses to availability of financial aid. In all, 650 schools were in contention for the top spots.

And, here are the actual lists.

Top 10 public schools:

1. University of Virginia (Charlottesville)
2. City University of New York - Hunter College (New York, N.Y.)
3. New College of Florida (Sarasota)
4. Florida State University (Tallahassee)
5. University of Colorado-Boulder
6. State University of New York-Binghamton
7. University of Georgia (Athens)
8. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Blacksburg)
9. Texas A&M University (College Station)
10. University of Oklahoma (Norman)

Top 10 private schools:

1. Swarthmore College (Swarthmore, Pa.)
2. Harvard College (Cambridge, Mass.)
3. Wesleyan College (Macon, Ga.)
4. Princeton University (Princeton, N.J.)
5. Yale University (New Haven, Conn.)
6. Williams College (Williamstown, Mass.)
7. Rice University (Houston, Texas)
8. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Cambridge, Mass.)
9. Amherst College (Amherst, Mass.)
10. Wellesley College (Wellesley, Mass.)