Chico State University recently landed itself on Money Magazine’s “Best Colleges for Your Money” rankings for 2017.

Out of 2,400 colleges and universities across the U.S., and 711 schools applicable, CSU, Chico ranked number 174.

The list gathers information such as educational quality, affordability, and alumni success, to gather a well-rounded calculation of the nations top schools. In order for a school to be counted in the list, they needed to have qualifying criteria such as a minimum enrollment of 500 students, not to be in a current state of financial distress, and have sufficient data to be analyzed.

The list comes out yearly and points to highlight schools that are an affordable option, while also providing a quality education. This is the third year in a row that CSU, Chico has found a spot on Money’s list.

The rankings boast some of the most elite schools in the country in the top ten such as Stanford, Harvard, Berkeley, and MIT. The CSU system had a very strong presence with twelve universities making it in the top two hundred.

Chico State was a speaking destination of former Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ campaign during the 2016 presidential election and a talking point of many more public figures.

Among ranking the quality of education, a primary factor used in the process was weighing the success of post-graduate alumni. “Employers seek out Chico State students for their amazing communication skills, teamwork, work ethic, and hands-on experience,” said Megan Odom, director of the university’s Career Center, “We hear time and time again how prepared our graduates are for the world of work.”

Nicole Henson can be reached at [email protected] or @theorionnews on Twitter.