Tag: rankings

  • November 10, 2023

Rankings: Usefulness

For a published college rankling to be useful during application season, it has to emphasize factors that matter to applicants. For example, if a ranking places significant weight (e.g. more than 25%) on the percentage of instructors who has a Ph.D., it is natural to ask if having a doctorate makes someone a better instructor. Alumni donations is another factor that may seem less consequential at first glance. However, generous donations can allow for more financial aid, better equipment and a greater selection of learning programs.

Because publishers do make their methodology public to some extent, applicants to elite colleges should take the time and examine these disclosures with family to make sure that they are following information sources that will lead to informed decisions.

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  • September 4, 2023

Rankings: reader beware

This posting is not about whether rankings are harmful or beneficial. Rather, it is about what to be aware of when reading a given ranking as the results of each one is based on its own combination of factors. Here are a few examples:

  1. Forbes does not rank the service academies. Like some other rankings, it does not separate large land-grant state universities from small undergraduate focused liberal arts colleges. Additionally, weight is given to how frequently a college’s alumni appear in Forbes own list of prominent individuals.
  2. U.S. News produces the most well-known ranking. It does separate smaller liberal arts colleges from larger universities. However, alumni giving (to be removed from this year onwards) carried weight, meaning colleges that provide quality education to students from lower income household would suffer. Starting this, the ranking will place stronger emphasis on the diversity of a college’s student body but it is not clear how the recent Supreme Court decision will affect future results.
  3. Niche.com takes student reviews into account. While it is important to know what the most important people on campus think, it is not difficult to see how objectively curating these reviews is more art than science.

Even when multiple rankings use the same factor (e.g. academic rigor), the interpretation can vary. Remember that regardless of publisher, rankings are opinions at their core.