NMSU online programs continue to be recognized for affordability

NMSU online programs continue to be recognized for affordability DATE: 06/01/2016 WRITER: Minerva Baumann, 575-646-7566, mbauma46@nmsu.edu CONTACT: Judy Bosland, 575-646-6131, jbosland@nmsu.edu New Mexico State University was named among the top schools in the country for affordable, high quality online education for 2016. Affordable Colleges Online has ranked NMSU among the top five in the U.S. in 2016 for its online master’s degree in criminal justice. NMSU tied for fourth place with the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. “The online master’s in criminal justice program has high quality faculty who genuinely care about students and make themselves accessible to them,” said Francisco J. Alatorre, assistant professor of criminal justice in the College of Arts and Sciences. “We serve students interested in advancing their careers and students interested in pursuing doctoral programs. It is rewarding to see outside agencies recognize our efforts, particularly based on alumni feedback.” Affordable Colleges Online compares schools that are public and non profit based on online degrees available, graduate tuition and fees, academic and career counseling services, job placement for graduates as well as Peer-Based Value, which compares the cost of each program to the cost of similar programs with the same qualitative score. NMSU’s master’s of public health degree is tied for ninth place with Michigan State and two other universities while NMSU’s doctorate in nursing practice is ranked 23rd. “We are very pleased to see two of our academic programs getting recognition about their cost effectiveness,” said Donna Wagner, dean of NMSU’s College of Health and Social Services. “Students who are prepared in the MPH program and the DNP program receive an excellent education for an affordable cost and it is great for our faculty and college that this is being acknowledged by the Affordable Colleges Online.” Affordable Colleges Online ranking of the best online programs for the 2016-2017 school year and a complete look at the methodology can be found here: http://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/methodology/