Best in the West and North 2 NOVEMBER 19, 2003 UNBC climbs to 7th place in Maclean's small university rankings . by Kathleen De vere The ratings are in and Maclean’s has just confirmed what UNEC students already know: UNBC rocks. Out of two dozen primarily undergraduate universities UNBC has climbed to seventh place, the highest ranking our school has ever received in the annual survey. More importantly UNBC “UNBC is now the highest ranked small university in all of Western Canada, and the highest ranked uni- versity with a Northern focus.” is now the highest ranked small university in all of Western Canada, and the highest ranked university with a Northern focus. - “T think that it’s a big thing this year, for the first time we've beaten Lethbridge and Winnipeg” said Rob Van Adrichem, UNBC’s Director of Media and Public Relations. “We also did better in the rankings this year than Laurentian and Lakehead which are seen as the only other schools with a northern focus in Canada. We're the best in the west and the best in the North.” UNBC’s climb in the Maclean’s rankings is not only gar- nering the University positive attention in British Columbia, but across Canada as well, according to Shirley Bond, Minister for Advanced Education, and Prince George resi- dent. The main reasons for UNBC’s climb upward in the rank- ings was the fact that UNBC attracts highly quality students and places them in small intimate classrooms. 60% of first and second year students classes have fewer than 25 stu- dents, and in the third and fourth year that number rises to 75%. The small class sizes may be the reason for the increase in UNBC’s ratings, but for UNBC students it’s not a surprise, it’s the reason they came here in the first place. UNBC was a first choice for many students because of the smaller, more intimate feel of the school. Jane, a first year computer sci- ence major decided to come to UNBC because, “UBC is too large and too expensive. You're like a little fish swimming around in a giant ocean and you don’t get to know anyone.” Another student who preferred to remain anonymous said, “I came because it was much closer to my family than the other universities in BC, but stayed because of the smaller class sizes, my professors know my name, and because I can walk up to any of my professors and ask them for help, and ‘because I was able to get a research position right out of my second year.” Overall, people are pleased at UNBC’s continual climb in the rankings. “The society and all the board members feel that is great. It’s a reflection of UNBC’s increasingly positive reputation” said Tamara Sweet, NUGSS’s director of External Affairs. Shirley Bond was quoted as saying “I think this is good, not just for Prince George, but for all of BC, its very good news, Dr. Jago and everyone at UNBC should be very proud of these rankings. Moving up in the rankings is excellent news, and I’m sure UNBC will work hard to con- tinue and enhance its focus on northern BC.” : There were several other reasons for UNBC’s improved ratings, like UNBC’s high quality faculty. Over 90% of pro- fessors at UNBC have a PhD, placing us 6th in our category, photo by Dana Schwehr “UNBC attracts high quality students and places them in small intimate classrooms” and our social sciences and humanities faculty is second best » in the country at attracting federal funding for research. UNBC’s fast growing library is also a reason for the high ranking. The library here is rated the best in Canada for its commitment to generating funding for new acquisitions. “UBC is too large and too expen- sive. Youre like a little fish swimming around in a giant ocean and you don’t get to know anyone.” This year there was over $1.5 million spent on acquisitions in an effort to expand the collection, which now numbers over 605,000 volumes. UNBC also did very well in the category that measures the percentage of the operating budget that is dedicated to student services and funding, rising to 7th place overall. Last year, UNBC gave out over $1 million in scholarships and bursaries. However, all is not rosy. This year Maclean’s was not the only one who released a study of post secondary institu- tions. The right wing paper The National Post also released a ranking of universities, and UNBC placed an abysmal 42nd overall. However, luckily for UNBC, the National Post article is not acknowledged as a reliable or respected guide of university quality.