UNC Asheville is featured in the 2015 edition of The Princeton Review’s The Best 379 Colleges, and also is ranked at No. 14 on the “Town-Gown Relations are Great” list that is part of the annual guidebook released today.

The Princeton Review selected the 379 colleges and universities, primarily based on academic strength, from more than 2,500 on which data are collected. The “best of” lists and descriptions of each college in the guidebook are based on a survey of 130,000 students who provide candid assessments of their institutions.

The Princeton Review praised UNC Asheville as offering a “top-notch academic experience,” citing challenging course material, professors who are devoted and passionate about their fields of study and the liberal arts curriculum. “It’s wonderful when every semester, at least two seemingly unrelated classes end up teaching the same lessons through different means and subjects,” said a student quoted in the guide. Students praised professors’ contagious enthusiasm for their subjects, adding that “professors are available and more than willing to assist students outside of class.”

UNC Asheville achieved a “quality of life” rating of 96 (scale maximum is 99) for the second year in a row, with students commenting that the university “fosters the idea that individuality is essential,” and that everyone “is easily accepted here.” Students surveyed gave high marks to downtown Asheville as well as the university. According to the guide, many students are environmentally conscious and love the campus’s proximity to the Blue Ridge Mountains. Students surveyed also praised UNC Asheville’s outdoor programs, including rock-climbing, caving, hiking and kayaking trips.

Earlier this year, The Princeton Review also ranked UNC Asheville as one of the nation’s 75 “Best Value” public colleges, and the Fiske Guide to Colleges called UNC Asheville “one of the best education bargains in the country.” UNC Asheville has been ranked seventh in the nation among public liberal arts colleges by U.S. News & World Report, and received praise for value and quality by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.