Jordan Gerard/Winonan
Winona State University scored second in the “Best Regional Universities” category among public universities in Minnesota.
U.S. News and World Report’s Midwestern category ranked 108 colleges and universities.Winona State ranks 65th overall in Midwest, 2nd among public universities in Minnesota.
Winona State is the highest ranked university over six other universities in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.
The criteria for the list includes graduation and returning students rate, faculty resources, financial resources, peer assessment, alumni giving and student selectivity or how many people applied compared to how many people were admitted.
Students explained why they thought Winona State deserves this spot.
“It’s a small city but there’s more to it,” Nathan P. Rongstad, sophomore, said. “You know people, but there’s still room to network and find more friends.”
Sophomore Sam Hanson agreed. “Winona is a perfect size campus where there is enough people to be an individual when it comes to recognition, but large enough that you can have such diverse groups of friends and people.”
Other students said popular majors like nursing, education and engineering also make Winona State a desirable university.
“My first choice was their nursing program because they are an accredited program that works directly with Mayo, Gundersen and Winona Health,” senior Stephanie Landsom said. She also likes the smaller class sizes and that the campus is so pretty.
Landsom graduates this December, and she liked having the lakes close by, the wellness center and short walks to class.
A strong work ethic among students is also favorable to having a second-place ranking, said one student; not everyone parties in Winona like other schools, so it’s easy to fit in and find people with similar interests.
“The professors know their students by name,” junior Andrew Zwickey said.
Alumnus Quinton Sand, class of 2011, said he liked Winona State because, it had a small town feel, and the campus was very adaptable.
Like Sand, Hanson said Winona State has a family-like feel.
“The other schools I visited just didn’t have the right feeling as I got when I came to Winona State,” Hanson said. “The size of our school helps to contribute to the sense of family and acceptance that exists on our campus.”
Sports are another reason that contributes to why Winona ranked so high.
“The most enjoyable part about Winona was attending the sporting events and playing intramural sports. I also enjoyed running around the lakes in fall and spring,” Sand said.
Sophomore Jennifer Johnson said she likes Winona State because it’s a great education with an affordable price.
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