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Chico State

College Consensus Names CSU, Chico One of Nation’s Best Public Schools

An academic building sits amongst majestic trees with a lush green lawn in front.
Jason Halley / University Photographer

Kendall Hall is seen on Thursday, April 30, 2020 in Chico, Calif. (Jason Halley/University Photographer/CSU, Chico)

Most affordable, most transformative and best bang for the buck. Statewide, regional and national. Public, private and online.

The range of “best of” college and university rankings can vary as widely as the educations the institutions offer. Enter College Consensus, a college review aggregator, which has compiled a ranking of higher education institutions based on a wide range of regional and national lists.

Based on its rich reputation of excellence, California State University, Chico has been ranked No. 40 on a list of “Best Public Colleges and Universities for 2020” list by College Consensus, placing it in the top 100 nationwide. CSU, Chico also appeared on another College Consensus list, at No. 24 on the “25 Best Online Public Colleges and Universities, making it one of only 13 higher education institutions to appear on both lists.

While higher education must evolve to meet new challenges, colleges and universities continue to work to maintain high standards in education, while remaining accessible to as many students as possible. The schools on the College Consensus—including CSU, Chico—list lead the way in affordability and innovation, making them the most appealing to a broad swath of prospective students.

“There are so many lists and rankings for prospective students and their families to wade through that it could be overwhelming,” said Kim Guanzon, director of the Office of Admissions. “Any appearance on a national and regional list is an honor, so a ranking like this helps to provide a little more perspective about where Chico State lines up in all facets of higher education.”

To compile its rankings, College Consensus used data from reputable national college ranking systems including Forbes magazine, Money magazine, US News and World Report, Wall Street Journal, WalletHub and Washington Monthly.

The CSU system had several entries in the top 50, including Stanislaus State (at No. 7); CSU, Channel Islands (No. 18); Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (No. 23); Cal State LA (No. 25); CSU, Monterey Bay (No. 26); Cal State Long Beach (No. 28); CSU, Dominguez Hills (No. 29); Cal Maritime (No. 34); CSUN (No. 37); and Cal State San Bernardino (No. 41).

The University is regularly recognized for its excellence on a number of different lists, having appeared on Washington Monthly’s “Best Bang for the Buck in the West” and Money magazine’s “2019–20 Best Colleges in America” lists last summer. CSU, Chico has also recently been honored for its School of Nursing within the state of California, its robust Study Abroad program, tree conservation and sustainable practices, computer science and cybersecurity programs and its College of Agriculture.