Debunking Myths About the U.S. News Best Colleges Rankings
Each spring, after college admissions letters have been mailed, U.S. News sees an uptick in visitors to the Best Colleges rankings. High school seniors and their parents turn to our website to research tuition, financial aid resources, academic life and all of the other information we gather on 1,800 colleges and universities nationwide.
For the most part, our audience responds positively. One parent recently wrote: "After reading through the ("Best Colleges" guidebook), my daughter has seriously started considering a gap year and knows that a small liberal arts college is probably best for her. I also like that there are regional and state rankings since she has very particular ideas about where she wants to live while she studies. All in all, a handy resource."
We also occasionally receive criticism that the Best Colleges rankings lead to more rejections, measure the wrong aspects of higher education, force students to limit their search to a small pool of top schools, and, in general, create an environment of high anxiety among high school seniors and their parents.
The latest criticisms come from New York Times columnist Frank Bruni. In arguing that where you go to college does not define your value as a person (we agree), Bruni perpetuates several myths you may have heard about the U.S. News rankings.
Myth 1: Schools reject more students to rise in the U.S. News rankings.
Rejecting more students does not improve a school's U.S. News rank. In our methodology, the acceptance rate counts for 1.5 percent of a school's rank, which means that it would take a nearly 40 percentage point drop in the acceptance rate to change a college's position in the rankings. This is virtually impossible.
Myth 2: Schools that spend money on expensive facilities like climbing walls and gyms will rise in the U.S. News rankings.
We do not reward schools for spending more money on rock climbing walls, dorms, food service, sports and other non-education areas. We do think money matters, but spent on the right things. We measure expenditures that go directly toward educating students, such as a school's average per-student spending on classroom instruction.
Myth 3: The U.S. News rankings force students to focus on the top 10 schools, shrinking the pool of schools they should consider.
A relatively small group of students are interested in applying to the top 10 schools in the National Universities and National Liberal Arts Colleges rankings, which is why U.S. News publishes rankings and data on nearly 1,800 schools nationwide. Our rankings do not shrink the pool of schools that students consider but introduce them to a range of options, from public universities to regional schools and small liberal arts colleges.
Ninety percent of people visiting the Best Colleges rankings are researching universities outside the top 10 schools on both the National Universities and National Liberal Arts Colleges lists.
Myth 4: The U.S. News rankings measure the wrong aspects of higher education.
The U.S. News rankings measure academic excellence. We factor hundreds of statistical data points into the calculation of each school's rank. While we gather information on the student experience and campus life, from study abroad opportunities to campus safety data, these areas are not factored into a school's rank.
We know our rankings aren't perfect, in part because some of the data we'd like to get on learning outcomes and student engagement aren't available on a comparative basis. But we believe that the U.S. News rankings are a useful source of information for students and their families as they consider their college options. We hope you will use them wisely to identify the school that's the best fit for you -- and we wish you luck in making your college decision.
