University of St. Thomas, Houston’s Catholic University, ranks #16 in Niche’s 2020 Best Colleges in Texas and #23 in the Best College Locations in America rankings.

“The University of St. Thomas is once again honored to be recognized by Niche as a top university in Texas and as the #23 in the Best College Locations in America rankings,” Arthur Ortiz, vice president for Enrollment Management, said. “Niche’s acknowledgement of UST’s strong academics, diversity and value are accurate depictions of our great institution. UST is very proud of the success of our first-generation students who retain at 87 percent over the last two years, which sits among the highest in the nation.”

Niche is an online resource made up of a unique blend of data scientists, engineers, parents and regular people who are passionate about helping you discover the best school, company or neighborhood. Niche combines reviews from people who share their personal experiences with their team of data scientists who evaluate countless data sets to produce the rankings, report cards and in-depth profiles. Niche also surveys students and alumni at each school as part of the ranking.

• St. Thomas also ranks #23 out of 1,607 on Niche’s Best College Locations in America
• St. Thomas ranks #1 on Niche’s Best College Locations in Texas

Niche gives University of St. Thomas a B+ grade when averaging grades in categories like academics, diversity, athletics, professors, dorms, student life, value, campus, party scene, location, campus food and safety.

One student surveyed writes “Unlike public universities or colleges, where the number of students in a single class lies within the hundreds, St. Thomas is a relatively small institution where interaction between the student and professor is highly encouraged and very easy.”

St. Thomas highlights include:

• Became a provisional member of NCAA, Div. III and now boast 12 men and women’s athletic teams with new ones on the horizon.

• St. Thomas has also gone test-optional admissions where you can gain admissions through your high school GPA, recommendation and an interview versus submitting SAT or ACT scores.
• Last year, UST went to a banded tuition model to graduate students on time for less money. Banded tuition is a flat rate for basic tuition when taking between 12 and 18 credits.
• UST is on the move. It celebrated its largest incoming class in University history in the fall of 2019.
• It offers more than 35 majors.
• Student: Faculty ratio is 11:1
• UST is the place to go for pre-med, pre-dentistry and pre-pharmacy.  Ninety-three percent of UST pre-med students are accepted into medical school after interviewing.