Kennesaw State University earned an “A” from the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) in the national education group’s 2019–2020 What Will They Learn? report.

Kennesaw State was one of only 22 institutions nationwide recognized for its high-quality core curriculum to achieve the group’s highest ranking in its annual assessment of general education programs.

This is the ninth consecutive year Kennesaw State has earned an “A” in the report. In this year’s study, KSU ranked in the top 2 percent among 1,123 public and private four-year institutions surveyed, according to the Washington, D.C.-based group.

“A student-centered focus has led Kennesaw State to be honored with the highest score in this measure of excellence,” said Kennesaw State President Pamela Whitten. “This recognition places KSU among a select group of universities in the nation and attests to the value of the core curriculum for our undergraduates.” 

Excluding the service academies, KSU also has the lowest in-state and out-of-state tuition rates of all those ranked “A.” 

ACTA assigns schools a letter grade ranging from “A” to “F” based on how many of seven core subjects they require as part of their general education programs. Those subjects are composition, literature (at an intermediate level), foreign language, U.S. government or history, economics, math and natural science. The “A” schools were those that require a course in at least six out of the seven academic subjects. 

Unlike traditional ranking systems, “What Will They Learn?” assesses the core academic requirements at every four-year public university with a stated liberal arts mission as well as hundreds of private colleges and universities selected on the basis of size, mission and regional representation.

All schools in the study are regionally accredited, nonprofit institutions. Combined, they enroll nearly 8 million undergraduate students.

ACTA is an independent, nonprofit organization committed to academic freedom, excellence and accountability at America’s colleges and universities.