After conducting a study comparing Kansas universities to schools in other states, the Kansas Board of Regents named the University of Kansas a best buy for the 2004-2005 academic year.

Kansas State University and Wichita State University were also named best buys.

The three universities, the state’s only research universities, are 21 percent below the national average in tuition, which is $5,618. The universities are also 15 percent lower than the regional average, which is $5,199.

All figures come from the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, of which all three schools are members.

Not only did the large state universities make the best buy list, so did the state’s three regional schools.

Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University offered tuition rates that were one-third less than the national average of $4,585. The average tuition of the three schools, $3,077, was one-quarter less than the regional average of $4,121.

Figures for those three universities come from the American Association of State Colleges and Univerisities, of which all are members.

The best buy moniker only encompasses cost, said Kip Peterson, director of government relations and communications for the Kansas Board of Regents. Value and benefit were not part of the analysis, Peterson said.

Ranking consists of many factors and is compiled in different ways.

U.S. News and World Report uses eight different factors, none of which include cost, said Robert J. Norris, director of data research for U.S. News & World Report. The factors comprise peer assessment, admissions, financial resources, faculty resources, alumni giving, reputation, graduation and retention.

The magazine ranks schools against their peers throughout the nation, not just regionally, Norris said.

“People should look at more than price alone,” Norris said. “But looking at equal schools it can matter, it’s perception.”

If students compare schools throughout the region or state, price is probably a factor in deciding where to go, Norris said. But students who are looking at colleges throughout the nation are looking at more things than just price.

Cost can still be significant, however, when you are comparing a school like Northwestern University, which costs almost $40,000 for tuition and housing, with the University of Kansas, which costs about $12,000, Norris said.