USC named to 'party school' list - wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina |

USC named to 'party school' list

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(CNN) - The University of South Carolina is one of the top party schools in the nation, according to a company known for test-prep, tutoring, and other student services.

The Princeton Review company included USC on its list of "The Best 377 Colleges." Gamecock nation jumped from No. 20 on the party school list last year to No. 17 in the most current listing.

The company rated party schools on student surveys. The questionnaires track the amount of time students spend studying outside of class, how often they use drugs or alcohol on campus, and how popular fraternities and sororities are.

West Virginia University in Morgantown, WV is at the top of the list.

Officials from WVU released a statement following the release of the rankings, claiming the study "has no real credibility."

Ohio University was 2011's top party school.

Brigham Young University in Provo, UT led the "stone cold sober" list. BYU has held the ranking for 15 straight years.

The Princeton Review's top 20 party schools:

  1. West Virginia University, Morgantown
  2. University of Iowa, Iowa City
  3. Ohio University, Athens
  4. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
  5. University of Georgia, Athens
  6. University of Florida, Gainesville
  7. University of California-Santa Barbara
  8. Florida State University, Tallahassee
  9. Miami University of Ohio, Oxford
  10. Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
  11. Penn State University, University Park, PA
  12. DePauw University, Greencastle, IN
  13. University of Wisconsin-Madison
  14. University of Mississippi
  15. University of Texas-Austin
  16. University of Maryland, College Park
  17. University of South Carolina, Columbia
  18. James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA
  19. University of Maine, Orono
  20. University of Tennessee, Knoxville

The Princeton Review's top 20 stone-cold sober schools:

  1. Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
  2. Wheaton College, Wheaton, IL
  3. U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD
  4. U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT
  5. Grove City College, Grove City, PA
  6. U.S. Military Academy, West Point, NY
  7. City University of New York-Brooklyn College
  8. Wesleyan College, Macon, GA
  9. Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA
  10. Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI
  11. City University of New York-City College
  12. City University of New York-Queens-Hunter College, Flushing, NY
  13. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering, Needham, MA
  14. Agnes Scott College, Atlanta-Decatur, GA
  15. Simmons College, Boston
  16. U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO
  17. Pepperdine University, Malibu, CA
  18. Becker College, Worcester, MA
  19. Cooper Union for the Advancement of New York
  20. California State University-Stanislaus, Turlock, CA

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