Special to the Messenger

A nationwide Kaplan/Newsweek survey of high school guidance counselors recommends Troy State University as one of 70 colleges and universities that "offer the best value for your tuition dollar."

The random survey of high school guidance counselors is published this month in the Kaplan/Newsweek College Catalog 2002. The survey is used as the basis for the rankings in the Kaplan catalog.

TSU is one of only three Alabama universities ranked in the "best value" category. Other schools in the ranking included Clemson, Georgia Tech, Oregon State, Rice, the University of Texas and Virginia Tech.

The survey also named TSU as one of 27 "hidden treasures," defined in the catalog as "terrific schools" that "arent necessarily the most famous ones." One other university in Alabama made this listing, which also included Furman University, Elon College, Santa Clara University and Miami (Ohio) University.

Jack Hawkins Jr., chancellor of the Troy State University System, said the Kaplan ranking proves what many students and alumni already know.

"This recognition captures our primary goal at Troy State University: provide a quality education for a great value," Hawkins said. "It is gratifying that high school guidance counselors recognize Troy State University for the excellent educational value that it is."

The catalog provides a brief profile of universities, including data on enrollment, academics, student life, athletics and admissions.

Kaplan, a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company, issues its catalog each year profiling more than 1,000 U.S. universities in several areas, including value, academic excellence and responsiveness to student needs. Kaplans guide is also free of paid advertising from the profiled schools and has never accepted money from schools profiled in their publications.

In recent years, Troy State University has also received recognition from other publications, including Money magazines ranking of "Best Buys" among U.S. universities.