Creighton University Awards and Honors

Although rankings and honors are not the only ways to measure a university's quality, Creighton University is often recognized by outside groups for its education, mission, community outreach and academic excellence.

Outlined below is a brief summary of Creighton University's most recent rankings and awards.

Creighton University's academic profile places it among the top Catholic universities in America and among the top 10 private universities with enrollments of 3,000 or more.

For more than 20 years, Creighton has been a top-ranked Midwestern university in U.S. News and World Report's "America's Best Colleges." For the 10th year in a row, Creighton was No. 1 in the 2013 rankings of Midwest Regional universities. Creighton was also recognized for the sixth time as No. 1 in the Midwest region as a "best value" university for giving students the best return on their tuition investment.

 Princeton Review, has listed Creighton University once again as one of the nation's top 377 colleges and universities in its 2013 edition of the annual college guide.The University also made the top 20 list in two categories relating to quality of life activities. The review features comments from more than 122,000 students and a two-page profile on each institution. Students say that Creighton wants to help students "find deeper meanings in all that they do to enact change in the world.”

Creighton University's School of Law is listed as one of the nation's top 172 law schools in The Princeton Review's 2011 edition of "The Best 172 Law Schools."

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Creighton University is one of 71 Catholic colleges and universities nationally to be featured on CollegesofDistinction.com, a website dedicated to honoring schools nationwide for their excellence in student-focused higher education.

Nominated for participation in Colleges of Distinction through high school counselors’ recommendations, as well as quantitative research, the institutions are assessed using four distinctions: student engagement, quality of teaching, vibrancy of the college community and success of graduates.

Creighton was found to excel in all four distinctions and will receive a personal profile at http://collegesofdistinction.com/college-profiles/NE-nebraska/101-creighton-university.html.

The most recent edition of Barron's Best Buys in College Education lists Creighton University as one of more than 240 accredited American colleges described with reference to academic programs, campus environment, financial aid resources — and, of course, costs.

Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine listed Creighton University in its list of 100 best values in private universities in its December 2010 edition. These institutions provide a top-quality, academic education at an affordable price—usually because of generous financial aid. Creighton ranked 42.

Princeton Review, has named Creighton University in its third annual “Guide to 322 Green College” listing of the most environmentally responsible colleges in the U.S.A. and Canada. Creighton was the only school in Nebraska to be selected by the nationally known education-services company. For more information click here.

Creighton University is the first Catholic, Jesuit University to achieve Fair Trade status. The designation is given by Fair Trade Colleges & Universities USA, a national initiative to embed Fair Trade principles within administrative policy and the social and intellectual fabric of academic communities and recognizes the institution’s efforts to support Fair Trade through five established criteria.

Creighton University has been named to the 2013 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll for the sixth year. This is the highest federal recognition a college or university can receive for its commitment to volunteering, student- service learning and civic engagement as well as meaningful community outcomes.

Creighton was recognized in 2009 as a "best neighbor" for its community impact.  Creighton ranked in the top 10 at No. 6.

Creighton University is included in the "Guide to Service–Learning Colleges and Universities" showcasing higher education institutions that provide educational experiences through projects and courses outside the university or in partnership with other organization and groups.

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Creighton University ranks fourth nationally in Washington Monthly’s 2012 master’s universities rankings.  The monthly nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government, ranks schools based on their contribution to the public good.

Creighton University has been named again by the Fulbright Program to its list of colleges and universities that produced the most 2011-2012 U.S. Fulbright scholars.  The Fulbright U.S. Student Program equips future American leaders with the skills they need to thrive in an increasingly global environment by providing funding for one academic year of study, research or assistant-teaching abroad. For more information click here.

Creighton students and faculty regularly receive Fulbright grants to conduct research or expand their studies. In 2011, two students received these funds. More information is available on these honors here. Two Creighton faculty members also received Fulbright's for 2012.  Their story is available here.

 Creighton University undergraduate student, Alexander Matthew Stock, was awarded a prestigious Goldwater Scholarship for 2012. To find out more click here.

Creighton seniors are significantly more engaged in class work, had more meaningful mentoring relationships with faculty, saw their coursework as relevant, useful and applicable to their academic success and future plans and had a better understanding of the issues facing their community, nation, and world than did seniors from other institutions, according to a college student survey conducted by the Higher Education Institute at UCLA.  Read more here.

Creighton University voluntarily sought accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association (NCA) in 2006-2007. The University was reaccredited until 2017 with no interim visits or reports. Besides assessing formal educational activities, it evaluates such things as governance and administration, financial stability, admissions and student services, institutional resources, student learning, institutional effectiveness, and relationships with internal and external constituencies. 

Creighton University was named to EntrepreneurEDU.org's Graduate Model Program list for 2010-2011. Creighton is one of 30 schools on the list, which includes Harvard, MIT, Stanford, Duke and Penn. Creighton received this honor because of the Bioscience Entrepreneurship program offered through the College of Business. EntrepreneurEDU.org is a list of the best entrepreneurship and small business programs available at colleges and universities throughout the country.

Creighton University psychology professor Isabelle Cherney, Ph.D., was named Nebraska's 2007 "Professor of the Year," by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. Cherney was one of the 50 top professors chosen for their state's highest honor from among nearly 300 professors nominated nationwide.

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Creighton University School of Pharmacy and Health Professions has tied for 19th place in U. S. News & World Report's 2009 rankings for Best Graduate Schools in physical therapy.

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Creighton University's Catholic School Leadership (CSL) certificate has received the 2008 President's Award from the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA). The CSL certificate is an innovative online program that is ideal for Catholic school administrators who did not attend Catholic institutions. Creighton's Department of Education and the Archdiocese of Omaha Catholic Schools Office partnered to create a framework of attributes and capabilities necessary for effective leadership in Catholic schools which resulted in the CSL certificate.

Creighton's California Mall was chosen for a citation in Landscape Architecture, and the University was recognized for Outstanding Project in the Master Planning category by American School & University.

Creighton University ranked fifth in PC Magazine's 2006 Top Wired Colleges, an annual analysis of colleges throughout the nation. The recognition honors colleges with the most comprehensive – in terms of size, scope and quality – computing and technology offerings. Creighton was the only college in Nebraska and the only Jesuit, Catholic school in the nation recognized.

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Creighton University has been ranked as one of the best campuses for wireless access by Intel Corporation.

ComputerWorld magazine ranked Creighton University as one of the top places to work in information technology in 2007.

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In 2009, a Creighton law student was one of 15 students in the nation to receive the Burton Award for Excellence in legal writing.

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In 2008 and 2009, Creighton University Medical Center was honored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as an Organ Donation Medal of Honor Hospital.

Creighton University Medical Center has received two CIGNA quality designations for 2009 and 2010 in angioplasty and heart failure. These designations mean that the hospital has met rigorous quality criteria based on nationally recognized medical standards and expert advice. 

Creighton University was the first Catholic higher education institution to receive the prestigious Community Service Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges for its work in the Magis Clinic. This clinic, founded and run by students, is a free clinic for uninsured and underinsured people, staffed by volunteer physicians.

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Creighton University Medical Center was recognized as an accredited chest pain center in 2011 by the Society of Chest Pain Centers.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska has agreed to pay the $35,000 licensing fee for each hospital?s participation in the American College of Surgeons National Surgery Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP). ACS NSQIP is an outcomes-based program to measure and improve the quality of surgical care.

In 2010, Creighton University Medical Center was designated by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska as a Blue Distinction Center for Knee and Hip Replacement for the medical center's clinical expertise and quality of care. Blue Distinction Centers for Knee and Hip Replacement are part of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association?s expansion of its Blue Distinction designation.

In 2009 and 2010, Creighton University Medical Center was recognized for achievement in using evidence-based guidelines to provide the best possible care to patients through The American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association's Get With The Guidelines® program.

Creighton University School of Medicine was named a national Center of Excellence for Physician Information for the National Institute on Drug Abuse in 2007. These centers serve as national models for educating future physicians about drug abuse and addiction so they can better identify, prevent and treat patients at risk.

Creighton University Medical Center was named a Bariatric Center of Excellence by ABS in 2007. This designation recognizes surgical programs with a demonstrated track record of favorable outcomes and a complication rate of less than 1 percent in bariatric surgery.

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Creighton University Medical Center received a top, five-star ranking by Healthgrades, an independent hospital and physician ranking system.

In 2008, Creighton University Medical Center became the first hospital in the country to train other hospitals and health organizations from across the nation on a federal program called TeamStepps (Team Strategies and Tools to Enhance Performance and Patient Safety). The program was created by the Department of Defense to reduce preventable medical errors.

The National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) awarded Creighton University and its Faculty Partners Program the Promising Practices Award for 2008. This national award recognizes college and universities for their outstanding partnerships between student affairs professionals and academic affairs.

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Creighton University School of Medicine was selected in 2006 to participate in the Innovative Strategies for Transforming the Education of Physicians (ISTEP) project sponsored by the American Medical Association. ISTEP is a unique medical education research collaborative that brings together individuals and institutions from across the continuum of physician learning. Creighton is one of 16 research teams, representing 27 medical schools, participating in the AMA research collaborative.

Creighton student-athletes had a GPA of 3.37 in the spring of 2012. Four Creighton University athletic teams earned recognition from the NCAA based on its most recent multi-year Academic Progress Rates: men's and women's cross country, women's golf and volleyball.

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Creighton has won the MVC All-Academic Award in seven of the past eight seasons.

The Creighton volleyball team is one of seven schools nationally to earn the AVCA Team Academic Award each of the past eight seasons. Women's volleyball and basketball moved to the new D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Wayne and Eileen Ryan Athletic Center in the fall of 2009.Volleyball reached its first NCAA tournament in 2010 and Kirsten Bernthal Booth was named cvu.com's National Coach of the Year. 

Creighton's men's basketball program has won 20 or more games in 13 of the past 14 seasons, and is one of just 9 programs to make the postseason in each of the last 15 years. Creighton is the only school in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) history to attract more than 200,000 fans in a season (having done so seven times) and in 2008-2009 became the first to surpass the 300,000 milestone, as well. The men's basketball team has had more NCAA tournament appearances (8) in the last 14 years than any other MVC school.

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The men's soccer team has appeared in 19 of the past 20 NCAA Tournament appearances while remaining the only program with at least one selection in every MLS draft.  The program has made four College Cup showings since 1996.

The softball team has appeared in the NCAA Tournament in six of the last 10 years while winning three MVC regular-season titles in the last six years.

The Creighton baseball team moved into TD Ameritrade Park Omaha in 2011, the home of the College World Series. With its 1991 appearance, Creighton became the first program from the state to ever reach the CWS. The Creighton baseball team has also won back-to-back MVC Tournament titles.

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Creighton ranked seventh nationally in men's soccer attendance, sixth in men's basketball and 10th in baseball attendance in 2011-12.

The men's and women's cross country team were each honored by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross  Country Coaches Association for its work in the classroom. The men had the second highest GPA in the nation at 3.72, and the women had a 3.74 GPA.

The women's basketball team reached its fourth MVC Tournament final in the past six years and made eight postseasons in the last 10 years.

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