The University of Georgia continues to rank as one of the nation’s top public universities, according to U.S. News & World Report, which placed UGA 21st on its list of 2016 Best Public Universities, released today.

On the Best National Universities list, which is traditionally dominated by private institutions, UGA moved up to 61st this year and tied with Syracuse University, Southern Methodist University, Purdue University and Clemson University. UGA tied with two institutions for the No. 21 spot among public universities, and no public university was ranked 20th this year due to ties.

“The University of Georgia consistently ranks among the nation’s best public research universities,” said President Jere W. Morehead, “and I am excited about the future of our institution as we implement a number of transformative initiatives—including an experiential learning requirement—to further enhance the world-class education we provide.”

The state of Georgia is one of only four in the country with two institutions—Georgia Institute of Technology and UGA—listed among the top 25 public universities. UGA was one of only two institutions in the Southeastern Conference, along with the University of Florida, to rank in the top 25 among publics.

UGA’s position in the national rankings was helped by two critical measures of student success: a strong freshman retention rate of 94 percent and a record-high graduation rate of 85 percent.

UGA’s Terry College of Business continues to receive high marks overall, and two of its specialties—insurance and risk management, and real estate—ranked in the top five at second and third, respectively. The rankings of business programs are determined annually based on a peer survey of deans and senior faculty at various national institutions.

UGA recently was ranked No. 18 on the Forbes “Top 25 Public Colleges 2015” list and consistently ranks highly as one of the nation’s best values in public higher education. Washington Monthly ranked UGA as the third “Best Bang for the Buck” school in the Southeast in 2015, and Kiplinger’s ranked UGA as No. 10 nationally on its 2014 list of the best values among public colleges and universities.