Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine, in its March issue, ranked UH-Manoa eighth nationally when comparing the largest public universities.

Kiplinger's ranks the public colleges based on four criteria: affordability, admissions, access to faculty and achievement. From that rating, UH-Manoa scored eighth-highest in points, at 148.

University of Hawaii President Kenneth P. Mortimer said the ranking underscores what he has been saying all along about UH-Manoa.

"Our admissions standards and graduation rates exceed those of the leading public university in most states," he said.

"UH-Manoa is not only a great bargain, it is an excellent educational value. It should be on the short list of every university-bound high school senior in Hawaii," Mortimer said.

When ranked by affordability, UH-Manoa was at the national average at 7 percent. Affordability was calculated by taking the 1996-97 undergraduate tuition cost as a percentage of that state's median household income.

UH, however, exceeded the national average in the other areas. UH-Manoa's median test score on the Standard Achievement Test for the 1995-96 entering class was 1,120. The highest score on the ranking was 1,300 from the University of Virginia at Charlottesville and Pennsylvania State University at University Park. The lowest was 840 at Mississippi State University.

UH-Manoa scored just above the national average in access to faculty, with a ratio of 10 full-time students for every full-time instructor. And when ranked by achievement, about 62 percent of UH-Manoa students earn a bachelor's degree within six years. The national average is 51 percent.

"Our value ratings - based on a combination of cost and quality factors - tell you whether your state university is a good value," the article said.

"But some intangibles such as reputation and convenience are impossible to measure."