Adventist Andrews University has been ranked a third tier National University in the recently released U.S. News and World Report’s 2007 America’s Best Colleges special report.

Andrews University, which moved up from a fourth tier placement in 2006, is the only Seventh-day Adventist educational institution to be considered a National University.

A National University is one of “the 248 American universities (162 public, 86 private) that offer a wide range of undergraduate majors as well as master’s and doctoral degrees; some emphasize research,” according to U.S. News.

Rank is determined by the schools’ weighted scores in different categories, including peer assessment, faculty/student ratio, average freshmen retention rate and average alumni giving rate.

Some of Andrews’ particular strengths were a strong freshmen retention rate, small classes and a good alumni giving rate, a news release reported.

Andrews also continues to hold distinction for its number of international students and racial diversity. This year, Andrews ranks as the 14th most diverse campus out of all 248 National Universities. Last year, its ranking was 16th.

Andrews is also the National University with the sixth highest percentage of international students, with 12 percent of the student population coming from outside the United States. The Andrews student body represents more than 90 countries.