BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo provides a quality education at an affordable price, according to Kiplinger's Personal Finance, which has placed UB on the magazine's 2011 list of the 100 Best Values in Public Colleges.

Kiplinger's ranked UB No. 46, selecting the school from a pool of more than 500 four-year colleges and universities.

The magazine evaluates schools based on criteria including SAT or ACT scores, admission and retention rates, student-faculty ratios and 4- and 6-year graduation rates, as well as cost, financial aid and student debt at graduation. Measures of academic quality carry more weight than measures of affordability. More methodology specifics -- as well as sortable rankings and other interactive features -- are available at http://www.kiplinger.com/tools/colleges.

"We're always pleased to be recognized for providing a quality education at an affordable price," said UB President John B. Simpson. "As we continue to build UB into a great research university, we have remained aware that research and education go hand-in-hand at the nation's best institutions of higher education. As a public university of the State of New York, affordability is one of our core values."

UB's No. 46 ranking was for in-state students, whose tuition and fees for the 2010-11 academic year total about $7,136. The university ranked 18th for value for out-of-state students, who pay an annual total of about $15,546 in tuition and fees.

This fall, UB's freshman class of about 3,150 students included more than 900 merit scholarship recipients and more than 320 honors students. This year's honors class, the largest in the history of the Honors College, entered UB with an average combined math and reading SAT score of 1382 and average high school grades of about 97.

The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive public university, a flagship institution in the State University of New York system and its largest and most comprehensive campus. UB's more than 28,000 students pursue their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate, graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American Universities.