Cal State San Bernardino has been ranked among the best universities in the nation in three categories according to Washington Monthly’s 2021 College Guide and Rankings.

CSUSB was ranked seventh out of 616 colleges in the Master’s University category, ninth out of 215 colleges in the Best Bang for the Buck in the West category, and listed among America’s Best Colleges for Student Voting.

“We are proud to once again be recognized by Washington Monthly as it highlights our commitment to provide our students with an excellent, affordable education. It also shows our successful efforts in encouraging our students to fulfill their civic duty and make a difference,” said university president Tomás D. Morales. “I applaud our faculty and staff as these rankings show their hard work and dedication to CSUSB.”

According to its website, Washington Monthly’s Master’s Universities category is for institutions that award a significant number of master’s degrees but few or no doctoral degrees. It ranks four-year schools based on their contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research, and providing opportunities for public service. In addition to CSUSB, which ranked seventh, six California State University campuses made the top 10.

In its Best Bang for the Buck category, which is organized by five regions, Washington Monthly recognizes the schools where students of modest means get the most for their money. Seven CSUs in the western region, including CSUSB, were listed in the top 10.

“Our exclusive list of schools (are) ranked according to how well they help non-wealthy students attain marketable degrees at affordable prices,” the Washington Monthly website says. “The list is created by isolating the social mobility metrics from the main rankings of four-year institutions.”

The Best Colleges for Student Voting category recognizes schools that do the most to turn their students into citizens.

“Special credit goes to the many on-campus, student-led groups that worked to get their peers to the polls,” its website says. “But student organizers have the best chance of success when they are actively supported by their administrations. That’s why each year at the Monthly, we release an honor roll listing the colleges doing the most to turn their students into citizens.”

To make the list, institutions had to submit action plans to the ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge for 2018 and 2020 (ALL IN helps colleges develop strategies to boost civic engagement). Schools also needed to have signed up to receive data from the National Study of Learning, Voting, and Engagement (NSLVE), which calculates college-specific registration and voting rates. And they must have made both their NSLVE data available to the public. In short, schools need to have shown a repeated commitment to increasing student voting – and have been transparent about the results.

To view all the 2021 College Guide and Rankings, visit the Washington Monthly website.