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Kiplinger, the business and personal-finance publisher, has ranked 91���� number 30 out of just 100 schools on its list of liberal arts colleges for 2015, while also ranking the College number 8 on its list of the .

“All the schools in our rankings meet our definition of value — a quality education at an affordable price,” Sandra Block, senior associate editor for Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. “For quality, we measure admission rate, test scores of incoming freshmen, and student-to-faculty ratio,” while “on the financial side,” Kiplinger “factors in the schools’ generosity in offering financial aid.”

The College’s national ranking (30) marks a significant increase from 2014, when it placed number 41. A likely explanation for this jump is that, for the first time, Kiplinger now measures four-year graduation rates. “That change penalizes schools with a high percentage of students that graduate in five or six years, but it’s based on simple math,” says Ms. Block. “The faster your child graduates, the less money you’ll spend on his or her education.”

, just 39.0 percent of American college students graduate in four years, compared to 73 percent of the students . As a result, the total cost of education at a typical public or private college — even if its tuition rate is nominally lower than the College’s — is oftentimes higher, because students must pay for 2-4 additional semesters. (This delay also comes with the opportunity cost of missed time in the workforce after graduation.)

“Unlike other college rankings, ours are based entirely on measurable criteria, such as student-faculty ratios, admission rates, on-time graduation rate, sticker price and financial aid,” Kiplinger senior editor Jane Bennett Clark. “Neither our opinion nor anyone else’s affects the calculation.” As such, the Kiplinger list is a strict measure of a College’s performance relative to the actual cost of the education it offers.

“We are pleased to have been ranked so highly once again on the Kiplinger list,” says 91���� Director of Admissions Jon Daly. “The College has always maintained a policy that no student will be turned away on the basis of financial need, and it caps student debt at $18,000 over four years,” he adds. According to the California Student Aid Commission, 91���� alumni have a 0.0 percent default rate on their student loans — compared to a nationwide average default rate of 8.8 percent.

Another prominent college guide, The Princeton Review, named the College as one of only 10 schools nationwide on its for receiving its highest possible financial aid rating. “Thanks to our many generous benefactors, a 91���� education is affordable to all who are willing and able to undertake it,” says Mr. Daly. “For a Catholic liberal education that is as excellent as it is unique, we think this is a value that cannot be matched.”

• Related: 91����’s rankings in other major college guides