University Of South Carolina Ranks In Top 20 Party Schools

COLUMBIA, S.C.,None — The top party schools in the nation were announced on Monday and the University of South Carolina made the top 20.

Since 1992, the Princeton Review has released a survey that determines the best party schools in the nation.

Ohio University, known for its rowdy Halloween parties, was named the nation's biggest party school.

The 2010 winner, University of Georgia, was knocked down to No. 2, followed by University of Mississippi at No. 3, University of Iowa at No. 4 and University of California Santa Barbara at No. 5.

The University of South Carolina in Columbia, S.C., came in at No. 20 on the 2011 rankings.

The Princeton Review survey is part of its 2012 edition of "The Best 376 Colleges," which includes 61 other categories such as best professors, most beautiful campus, best campus food and highest financial aid satisfaction.

Brigham Young University in Utah ranks as the top stone-cold sober school in the nation for the 14th straight year.

Here are the top 20 party schools in the nation by Princeton Review:

1. Ohio University, Athens, Ohio 2. University of Georgia, Athens, Ga. 3. University of Mississippi, Oxford, Miss. 4. University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 5. University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, Calif. 6. West Virginia University, Morgantown, W. Va. 7. Penn State University, University Park, Pa. 8. Florida State University, Tallahassee, Fla. 9. University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla. 10. University of Texas, Austin, Texas 11. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 12. Syracuse University, Syracuse, N.Y. 13. Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, La. 14. University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wis. 15. DePauw University, Greencastle, Ind. 16. Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind. 17. Arizona State University, Tempe, Ariz. 18. University of Maryland, College Park, Md. 19. University of Vermont, Burlington, Vt. 20. University of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C.

The Princeton Review, not affiliated with Princeton University, is a Massachusetts-based company known for its test preparation courses educational services and books.

The guide's rankings are based on email surveys voluntarily filled out by 122,000 students at more than 370 colleges across the country.

WSOC