As Mississippi University for Women begins its search for a new president, a new study on affordable education suggests the job should be appealing to candidates for the position.
A recent study by financial data and technology company, Smart Asset, ranks The W as the “Best Value” among colleges and universities in the state.
Smart Asset evaluated the nation’s colleges and universities in four areas — tuition costs, scholarships/grants awarded, cost of living and starting salary upon graduation — to calculate a College Education Affordability Index.
On a scale of 1 to 100, the latter number being the most affordable, The W had a score of CEAI score 69.39, highest among Mississippi’s seven public universities and one private college measured.
The W was rated first in the state in lowest tuition cost ($5,350 annually) and living costs ($10,900 annually), third in average starting annual salary upon graduation ($39,200) and tied for second (with Mississippi State) in student retention rate at 79 percent.
The University of Mississippi was ranked second with a CEAI score of 64.52, followed closely by Mississippi State University (64.23).
Ole Miss ranked first in average scholarships/grants at $7,124 and student retention rate (86 percent) while Mississippi State ranked first in starting salary at $43,900.
The W’s strong showing in the study comes as the first steps are being taken to find a successor Dr. Jim Borsig, who will officially leave MUW to becoming Commissioner of Mississippi’s Institutions for Higher Learning on April 15. Borsig, MUW’s 14th President, was selected to take over as IHL Commissioner last month after three years at The W.
Although Mississippi’s eight public universities participate in selecting its president or chancellor, the IHL Board of Trustees makes the hire.
Caron Blanton, the IHL’s Director of Communications, said the IHL’s search committee — made up of IHL Board members C.D. Smith (chair), Shane Hooper and Christy Pickering – is still working on selecting a date for a listening session on campus.
“We really need to try to get this scheduled in the last two weeks of April or the first week of May, before the schools end for the semester,” Blanton said. “We wouldn’t want to have the listening session when faculty, staff and students are not on campus.”
The MUW has not yet selected a Campus Advisory Committee of students, faculty, staff and alumni to work with the IHL search committee.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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