A National Reputation
A National Reputation for Excellence
Over the years, the University of Maine at Farmington has earned a national reputation for excellence, quietly gaining stature as one of the finest state-supported liberal arts colleges in the northeastern U.S.Named a "Best College"
— U.S.News & World Report (2013–1998)
The University of Maine at Farmington has been named a "Best College" by U.S.News & World Report for 16 consecutive years (2013–1998) even though UMF chooses not to participate in the publication’s reputation survey.
Aside from that portion, we believe the annual college guide can be a useful tool in helping you pare down your list of potential schools and help you learn a lot about a college and possibly to compare schools’ statistics: graduation rates, student-to-faculty ratios, freshman retention rates, average class sizes, and more.
The U.S.News guidebook can also help you discover less well-known schools – colleges you may not have heard about,
but which may be a perfect fit for you.
A "Best Value School"
— U.S.News & World Report (2013, 2012)
The University of Maine at Farmington was also recognized by U.S.News as one of its "Great Schools at Great Prices" two consecutive years." According to U.S.News, the higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the deal. Only schools ranked in or near the top half of their categories are included, because U.S. News considers the most significant values to be among colleges that are above average academically.
The University of Maine at Farmington, Bowdoin, Bates and Colby colleges were the only Maine schools named to
the U.S.News list of Best Value Schools.
A Fulbright Scholar "Top Producer"
— Institute of International Education and U.S. Dept. of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (2012)
UMF was recognized as a 2012 Fulbright Scholar "top producer" by the Institute of International Education and the Fulbright Program's sponsor, the U.S. Dept. of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Currently, UMF has 11 UMF faculty members who have been named Fulbright Scholars. Recipients of the prestigious Fulbright award are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields.
The renowned Fulbright Program is designed to "increase mutual understanding between the people of the United
States and the people of other countries." Since its inception, it has provided almost 300,000 participants
– 111,000 from the U.S. – with the opportunity to study, teach, conduct research, exchange ideas and
contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. The Fulbright Program operates in 155 countries worldwide.
"A Top Green College"
— Princeton Review Guide to 322 Green Colleges (2013)
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
The Princeton Review’s 2013 Guide to 322 Green Colleges profiles institutions of higher education in the United States and three in Canada that demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainability in their academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities, and career preparation. It is the only free, comprehensive, annually updated guide that focuses solely on colleges that have demonstrated a notable commitment to sustainability.
To produce their guide, Princeton Review partnered with the United States Green Building Council(USGBC), a national nonprofit organization best-known for developing the LEED green building certification program. The USGBC launched its Center for Green Schools to increase its efforts to drive change in how campuses and schools are designed, constructed, and operated.
Princeton Review tallies a Green Rating for each school, based on data from a 50-question survey it conducts among hundreds of school administrators about their school’s environmental and sustainability-related commitments and initiatives.
The rating, on a scale of 60-99, provides a comprehensive measure of a school’s performance as an environmentally aware and prepared institution.
Specifically, the Princeton Review Green Rating considers:
- Whether students have a campus quality of life that is both healthy and sustainable.
- How environmentally responsible a school’s policies are.
- How well a school is preparing students for employment in the clean energy economy of the 21st century as well as for citizenship in a world now defined by environmental concerns and opportunities.
A "Perfect 5-Star Rating"
— Campus Pride, advocacy group for LGBTQ college students (2011)
The University of Maine at Farmington was one of just 33 colleges in the U.S. to earn a perfect 5-star rating from Campus Pride. The organization recognizes American colleges and universities for taking steps to make their campuses safer and more inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) students.
5-Star Schools were identified as excelling in areas such as: LGBTQ policy inclusion, support & institutional commitment, academic life, student life, housing, campus safety, counseling & health, and recruitment & retention efforts.
The University of Maine at Farmington was the only college in Maine named and just one of just six New England
colleges honored. Other 5-Star schools included Amherst College, Dartmouth College, M.I.T., Oberlin College,
Princeton Univ., Stanford Univ., Cal-Berkeley, U.C.L.A., Univ. Penn, Univ. Oregon, to name a few.
"A College of Distinction "
— Colleges of Distinction Guidebook
The University of Maine at Farmington received accolades as a "College of Distinction" from the 2008-2009 national guidebook of the same name.
Colleges of Distinction is a college guide with a unique approach. About 40 colleges were selected from each of six regions across the U.S. These "hidden gem" institutions had to meet four key criteria that make a college truly great: Engaged Students, Great Teaching, Vibrant Communities, and Successful Outcomes. These schools are not ranked, because every student has a different "number one college" based on their own individual needs and interests.
According to the guidebook and its accompanying Web site, some of the selected schools are well known to the general public, and some are not. But each selected institution has been honored for the excellence of its programs, and is highly recommended by those in the know about college education.
Some of the schools recognized in the Northeast Region along with the University of Maine at Farmington include: Hartwick College, Hobart & William Smith Colleges, Quinnipiac University, Fordham University, Providence College, Ithaca College, St. Michael’s College (VT), Suffolk University, Fairfield University, SUNY– Oswegeo, Assumption College, Roger Williams University, Merrimack College, Sacred Heart University, Stonehill College, to name a few.
What it said about UMF:
"The University of Maine at Farmington offers innovative academics, a friendly and down-to-earth attitude,
and great results — all at the affordable price of a publicly-funded state college."
"One of 20 Schools That Foster Student Success"
— National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
Perhaps more significantly, the University of Maine at Farmington was also one of just 20 colleges and universities across the nation featured in Student Success in College: Creating Conditions That Matter. The book identifies schools that serve as models of educational effectiveness.
Student Success in College uses data collected by the National Survey of Student Engagement, which polls college students — asking them what’s required of them: how many papers they write, how often and how well they interact with professors, how often they participate in classroom discussions, and more.
The book’s authors interviewed students, faculty and staff and observed their behavior on campus. Student Success in College highlights 20 high-performing institutions that create a more supportive campus culture, where students are engaged, satisfied with their post-secondary experience, and are successful. UMF was distinguished as a college that is alive with a steady stream of innovative ideas and initiatives.
Schools featured included the University of Maine at Farmington, the University of Michigan, the University of Kansas, George Mason University, Gonzaga University, among others. UMF and Wheaton College in Massachusetts were the only New England colleges profiled in the book.
What it said about the University of Maine at Farmington:
- "[UMF has] an unshakable focus on student learning ... "
- "[UMF] students are equal partners and take their responsibilities seriously ... "
- "The campus is alive with a steady stream of innovative ideas and initiatives ..."
- "UMF’s evolution into a student success-oriented campus ... is the product of a campus culture where ’people and their success’ really do matter ... "
- "[UMF is] an engaged community of learners that capitalizes on its size and location, and gets the most out of its ... resources and talented students, faculty, and staff."
