The college guides can tell you something about Providence College. For example, U.S. News has ranked Providence College as one of the top two master’s level colleges and universities in the North for twelve consecutive years. (The 574 universities in this category offer a full range of undergraduate and master’s level programs and are ranked within four geographic regions.)

In the 2010 edition of U.S. News’ America’s Best Colleges:

• Providence ranked #2 among master’s level universities in the North region.
• PC’s 87% average graduation rate is the highest among 574 master’s level universities nationwide.
• Providence's average freshmen retention rate of 92% ranks it among the top five schools nationally in its designated category.
• The College is ranked among the top ten schools in the “Great Schools, Great Prices” category -- which relates academic quality to the net cost of attendance – among master’s level colleges and universities in the North.

But these accolades, though instructive, provide just one small glimpse of the Providence College experience. Like any dynamic community, PC is greater by far than the simple sum of all its interesting parts.