Columbia makes website’s top 10 list for college towns

Columbia made another top 10 list Wednesday, this time in a website’s list of best college towns outside metropolitan areas.

It ranks eighth – five places below the mid-Missouri city with the same name – in the latest survey by Livability.com., part of a media and marketing company based near Nashville.

Company analysts focused on 1,500 communities with a population between 25,000 and 250,000 residents.

It’s the first time Columbia made the list since it began in 2010, editor Mitch Kline said.

Columbia attained its rank for more than being home to the University of South Carolina, Benedict College, Allen University and Midlands Technical College. Other factors cited by the website were:

▪ A “vibrant social scene.”

▪ An “evolving arts atmosphere.”

▪ A stable local economy “thanks in large part to a steady stream of college students, many of whom decide to stay after graduation.”

▪ “Off campus, students find a city filled with cultural attractions, great restaurants and things to explore.”

Columbia got bonus points for USC’s success in collegiate sports. The community also has affordable rental housing and is a place where recent graduates stay after deciding “it’s a cool enough place,” the website said.

The website also liked the popularity of kayaking and canoeing on local rivers, although it did misidentify one as the Edisto.

Company analysts use a variety of information from the census and other studies as well as consulting staff who have visited communities to develop the list, Kline said.

“There’s a bit of art and a bit of science to it,” he said.