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itsjustpk Member since 2003

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Displaying articles for: 06-14-2009 - 06-20-2009

Speaking of College Rankings

by Gregg on 06-19-2009 10:00 AM - last edited on 06-19-2009 10:47 AM

I recently commented on colleges misusing SATs in the admissions process and on families over-valuing the U.S. News & World Report rankings (among others) when selecting colleges.  What appropriate timing, then for this article from Inside Higher Ed.

 

Read it closely.  It tells the story of how one university has prioritized the goal to move up in the U.S. News rankings and has allowed that goal to drive major decisions throughout campus.  Some of the adjustments have helped students, like admitting students who have performed better in high school and creating more classes with fewer than 20 students to ensure closer faculty interaction.  However, other choices don't provide the same positive results, for example automatically rating other colleges as "below average" on the U.S. News & World Report surveys, or admitting students with higher SAT scores over those who might bring cultural and ethnic diversity to campus.

 

While I hope many people would be concerned about the extent to which the rankings have affected the administrative decisions at this university, this is sadly not a unique situation.  Colleges everywhere are constantly pondering ways to improve their rankings or manipulate the system.

 

If nothing else, I hope this points out that the rankings that are available to families may involve some arbitrary distinctions.  A college might be able to change their rank simply by using a different system for reporting faculty salaries.  If your goal is simply to graduate from a highly ranked college, by all means use the rankings heavily in your search.  But if you want to experience a rich, diverse, and engaging college community, be sure to look beyond the numbers to find the best fit for you.

 

 

For information on Campus Bound's services, visit www.upromise.com/campusbound.

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