The University of North Texas, the largest and most comprehensive university in the North Texas region, was named one of the best colleges and universities in the West by The Princeton Review, a nationally known education services company.

UNT was one of 120 institutions to be recommended in the "Best in the West" section in the website feature 2011 Best Colleges: Region by Region posted Aug. 2 on PrincetonReview.com. The "Best in the West" colleges are in 15 states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

"This recognition provides a public endorsement of the high-quality education that UNT provides to its more than 36,000 students in nearly 250 degree programs," said Troy Johnson, vice provost and associate vice president for enrollment management.

UNT students learn in a traditional campus environment rich with opportunities. In labs and classrooms one-on-one with faculty, UNT students learn how to search for solutions to the world's most challenging problems – from human rights violations, to hope for diabetics, to reducing the impact of natural disasters.

The regional best colleges were chosen mainly for their excellent academic programs, said Robert Franek, Princeton Review's senior VP/publishing. The list was narrowed based on institutional data collected from the schools, visits to the schools, opinions of The Princeton Review staff, and recommendations of counselors and advisors. Students from the schools reported about their campus experiences -- from accessibility of professors to quality of campus food -- on an 80-question student survey. According to The Princeton Review website, students say UNT is a "wonderfully diverse" school that offers "an affordable education."

The schools are also rated in six categories -- academics, admissions selectivity, financial aid, fire safety, quality of life and green. 

The Princeton Review also designated 218 colleges in the Northeast, 152 in the Midwest, and 133 in the Southeast as best in their locales. Altogether, 623 colleges were named regional bests, making up about 25 percent of the nation's 2,500 four-year colleges.