New US News rankings are out
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Anonymous
Top schools have always acted “above it all” when it comes to rankings. They resent the fact that USNWR dares to puts non-elite, striver schools like Florida State or Virginia Tech in the same list as Princeton and Dartmouth, even if the Ivies are always ranked much higher. That has never deterred USNWR. It’s the really the middling schools that take USNWR the most seriously because USNWR tries to base their rankings on some degree of objective metrics beyond historical prestige, which gives the little guys a chance to improve. |
Anonymous
I'm from Illinois and have a pretty good grasp of the college choice dynamics for students from UMC suburban high schools in the Chicago metro area. There are a few issues with U of I that cause kids to go to nearby state flagships, even if the COA is slightly higher and/or the school is lower ranked. - the location, as many people described earlier. - Greek life dominates the social scene at U of I. At schools like Wisconsin and Michigan, Greek life exists, but it's not so in-your-face as it is at Illinois. Many students don't want that atmosphere. Additionally, rush is uber-competitive and inter-chapter relations can be a bit iffy. (As in, "Oh, you're a Kappa? You must be super easy." Your letters can really define you.) - Lots and lots and lots and lots of engineers. Business is big too. These two divisions often seem to dominate the academic culture of the school, which can be off-putting for liberal arts-type students. - and the biggest one, which is the most important, IMO, is that the state of Illinois is essentially in financial ruin and year in and year out, funding for higher education is an issue. For obvious reasons, that is a huge a concern for parents and students. I won't get into the minutiae of it, but this article does a great job of explaining why it causes many talented students to not consider Illinois state schools: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-college-budget-crunch-met-20160331-story.html |
Anonymous
Hope you are right--though we feed the beast by using them/debating about them/relying on them. I do think the latest changes shift the focus and thus the definition of "best." As a consumer, I want a rating that tells me primarily about the quality of the institution and the experience a student will have there. By shifting the focus to social concerns, such as grad rates for Pell Grant students, it seems to me they serve a different audience, perhaps trying to define what is "best" for the community at large. As the parent of a kid who won't get a Pell grant, the rankings begin to lose utility as a measure of "best" (for me as a consumer, that is.) |
Anonymous
But there is NO comparison between Carleton and Grinnell |
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
This is just ridiculous. Why do you continue to grind this axe? W&M is in better shape now than it ever has been. Incredible students, faculty, facilities. Moving toward an endowment of over $1b, which for a public school of its size its incredible. Just admitted one of its most competitive classes ever. It's true that apps have not grown in the last couple of years, but to be fair UVA apps were up a minuscule one percent this year. And UVA's incoming class is weighted 58/42 female/male --exactly the same as W&M. Yes it's a unique institution being compared to huge state schools; even so it holds its own. The only reason it fell this year is because the already idiotic USNWR changed it's methodology. Anyone who thinks you will get a better undergraduate education in the liberal arts and sciences at Florida, UCSB, UC Irvine, Michigan, UCB or heaven forfend UVA is delusional. Now there was a crisis at W&M in 1768 when both Harvard and Yale surpassed it in His Majesty's Colonial College Rankings. 
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Anonymous
Georgetown? |
Anonymous
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The top 20 percent at state U do as well in life as the "elite" graduates. Doing really well at a no name small college is probably better as you'll get to know profs who will get you into a good graduate program.
My former employer, a major national newspaper, no longer hires interns from elite programs. They were entitled and not very creative. |
Anonymous
And Georgetown is higher as well. If you look at LACs (I am aware it is a different category), W&L is #11. |
Anonymous
Do you have any idea how idiotic you sound? Calling solid universities like FSU and VT "strivers" says more about you than it does about those institutions. I can't decide if you actually graduated from a decent school but ended up a miserable and bitter failure or you always wanted to attend a decent school but couldn't because of qualifications and/or money. Either way. your posts always read as those of a loser who is far too invested into the college rankings farce. |
Anonymous
Oh come on. I am a Carleton grad and you are a little over the top with the boosterism. You are starting to sound like the UMD booster with his crazy talk, which does not reflect well on the school. I graduated from Carleton when no one had heard of it and am just happy its getting some recognition. Whether it's better than Grinnell, or Middlebury, or Davidson or any LAC in the top 20 really isn't important. |
Anonymous
| As a Carleton grad from long ago, I think that its name recognition (and that of other SLACs) has varied little over the years. Most people haven't heard of it, but it is known by those who matter. |
Anonymous
I have visited with my DD and looked it very much. I thought Miami was rising in the rankings. That is a huge drop, usually tied to a major event. Any ideas on why such a big drop? |
Anonymous
The majority of significant changes in the USNews rankings are very likely due to the changes in the ranking methodology. (There are a few articles on the changes. See e.g. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/09/10/us-news-college-rankings-formula-813559) |
Anonymous
Eh. They’re both excellent, top LACs that send a very large number of students to PhD programs. For all intents and purposes, they are very much peer institutions. (I say this as a Carleton grad.) |
Anonymous
| My oh my...the bickering here is comical. Was it this bad last year? |