STEUBENVILLE, OHIO—U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 Best Colleges guidebook ranked Franciscan University of Steubenville 26th among all Midwest universities, placing it in the top tier of the region’s 164 colleges. Franciscan’s ranking also makes it one of Ohio’s top 4 colleges.

Driving Franciscan’s strong showing for another consecutive year include an 87 percent first-year retention rate, a 72 percent graduation rate, and a 14-1 student/faculty ratio.

“It’s exciting and encouraging to see the growing number of students choosing to come to Franciscan year after year,” said Father Dave Pivonka, TOR ’89, president of Franciscan University. “But what’s most inspiring is to see them come alive and flourish during their time here. As we saw this past year, it’s the quality, not just the quantity, of our graduates that makes such an impact on our world.”

Franciscan’s new rankings also highlight its success in attracting and graduating low-income and first-generation students, moving in just one year from 92nd to 37th place in the “social mobility” category. The University’s affordability was also one of the factors included in Money magazine’s decision to give Franciscan a four-star rating in its Best Colleges in America 2023 publication.

The positive results from U.S. News come at a time of strong and sustained growth, as Franciscan welcomed its largest incoming class in the University’s history—over 770 students—in August. For the past seven years, overall enrollment, undergraduate enrollment, and on-campus enrollment have broken records, bringing the total number of students enrolled on campus and online to more than 3,800. The University’s growth was also evident in May with a record-breaking 818 graduates—a 30 percent increase over just three years.

U.S. News also ranked Franciscan University 11th among Best Colleges for Veterans in the Midwest, which identifies the schools doing the most to make a college education more affordable for veterans and active-duty service members.

U.S. News & World Report has included Franciscan University of Steubenville in the elite top tier of Midwest Universities each year since 1998.