In a new list from Forbes magazine of “Ten Top Colleges to Watch,” UVM ranks second among four schools in the top 200 that have consistently risen up the list since the rankings began in 2009. The university has moved up 230 positions, from 370^th to 140^th this year.

A number of stand-out factors explain UVM’s rapid rise, according to Forbes, including a high graduation rate and a lower than expected rate of student borrowing -- the university, in fact, is in the top 6 percent of all 650 ranked schools in both of these categories. Student debt default rate and overall debt burden rank highly and, they note, the university graduates American business leaders at the top of their fields, including Diana Greene, a member of the Board of Directors of Google, and Liz Paley, Senior VP of Ralph Lauren. “UVM exceeds our expectations,” Forbes writes, “by keeping debt loads low while remaining dedicated to graduating students in four years.” Read the story…