U.S. News and World Report recognizes ONU as #1 college in the Midwest for value

Ohio Northern University offers the best value of any college in the Midwest, according to new rankings from U.S. News & World Report.

In the publication’s 2025 Best Regional Colleges Midwest list, ONU is ranked #1 in Best Value Schools, moving up two places from 2024. In the overall rankings, the University is #2 in the Midwest and #1 in Ohio.

According to U.S. News, the best value rankings are based on a school’s academic quality and the net cost of attendance. “The higher the quality of the program and the lower the cost, the better the deal.”

This is the second accolade from a national publication recognizing the value of an ONU education. Earlier in the month, The Wall Street Journal ranked ONU #1 in the Buckeye State in the Best Value category in its 2025 Best Colleges in the U.S.

ONU’s undergraduate engineering program also receives high marks from U.S. News, ranking #12 nationally (and #1 in Ohio) on the publication’s list of Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (no doctorate). The civil engineering program is ranked #11 and mechanical engineering is ranked #15.

ONU’s undergraduate programs in business and computer science are also nationally ranked.

“These recognitions reinforce what our alumni and students already know,” said ONU President Melissa J. Baumann, Ph.D. “An ONU education provides an outstanding return on investment. We’re providing an affordable, world-class education that is within the financial reach of students and their families.”

Now in its 40th year, the U.S. News and World Report rankings evaluate nearly 1,500 national colleges and universities on up to 17 measures of academic quality and place an emphasis on social mobility and outcomes for graduating college students.