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Which Programs Are in the Next Grad School Rankings
Tweet Share on Facebook October 18, 2007 Comment (93)We've just started the data collection for the upcoming 2009 edition of America's Best Graduate Schools, which will be published at the end of March 2008. The statistical survey data collection for business, law, engineering, medicine, and education programs began on Oct. 17, 2007, on our password-secured website. The deadline to complete the statistical surveys is Nov. 16, 2007.
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A Voluntary System for College Accountability
Tweet Share on Facebook October 15, 2007 CommentI recently returned from the 2007 Southern Association for Institutional Research Conference in Little Rock, Ark.
I go to these conferences in the States and around the world to give talks on the U.S. News rankings, find out the latest trends at universities, determine what new higher education data U.S. News should try to collect, and get feedback. This was a meeting of institutional researchers, individuals at colleges and universities who collect and analyze college data for campus decision making and planning. Many of them also fill out the U.S. News surveys. I gave two presentations: “America’s Best Colleges Rankings: What Just Happened and What's Ahead” and “America's Best Graduate Schools Rankings: How They're Done and What's New.”
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One Option for Student Outcomes
Tweet Share on Facebook October 10, 2007 CommentMeasuring educational outcomes, developing comparable assessments, and bringing accountability to colleges and universities are currently among the hottest topics discussed by higher-education experts. One part of the conversation is to what degree the National Survey of Student Engagement results should be used. NSSE is an assessment tool that more or less measures student satisfaction at individual colleges.
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High School Counselors Take on the SAT, and Other News from NACAC 2007
Tweet Share on Facebook October 4, 2007 Comment (1)The hottest issue at National Association for College Admission Counseling's (NACAC) 2007 annual conference last week was the debate whether some aspects of the college admission process are unfair to many students. The high school counselors who attended had numerous issues with the SAT and ACT, particularly that these tests are given too much importance in admissions decisions. Counselors generally resented the fact that for students to "succeed" on the SAT, one had to "teach to test." Many counselors suggested that all colleges should be "test optional."
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What High School Students Really Think of the Rankings
Tweet Share on Facebook October 2, 2007 Comment (2)U.S. News and our chief critic, Lloyd Thacker of the Education Conservancy, apparently now agree on at least one thing that is very important: The U.S. News college rankings aren't what high school students are focusing on or worried about when they are going through the college application process.
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Measuring Economic Diversity at American Colleges
Tweet Share on Facebook September 18, 2007 Comment (1)Economic diversity has received growing attention in higher education, particularly at elite schools that haven't traditionally enrolled large numbers of low-income students or students from low-income families. It's also argued by many that colleges and universities should make a much better effort to educate students from low-income families, given higher education's role in social mobility.
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Correcting One of Our Critics
Tweet Share on Facebook September 14, 2007 Comment (3)Columbia College (Illinois) President Warrick Carter is wrong when he implies in recent letters to the Chicago Daily Herald and the Chicago Tribune that U.S. News ranked Columbia College in the recently published 2008 edition of America's Best Colleges. In fact, the exact opposite is the truth. Columbia College was very clearly listed among the "Unranked Schools" in the Universities Master's-Midwest category.
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The Top Liberal Arts Colleges Weigh In
Tweet Share on Facebook September 10, 2007 CommentA group of 19 college presidents representing many of U.S. News's top-ranked liberal arts colleges came out with their own "President's Statement on College Rankings" on Friday that was to be posted on all their schools' websites.
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Colleges That 'B Students' Should Consider
Tweet Share on Facebook September 7, 2007 Comment (7)What do you do if you are a high school student with less-than-dazzling grades and SAT/ACT scores and you still want to go to a very good school? U.S. News has an answer, and it's not looking at the main rankings. You should instead head to the exclusive list of "A-plus Options for B Students" for quality colleges that accept a significant number of applicants in the average-to-above-average range.
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Eight Programs That Enhance Learning
Tweet Share on Facebook September 4, 2007 Comment (3)If you are looking for schools that have some unique academic programs and also provide an especially rich academic environment on campus, then you may want to visit the Programs to Look For page in the free section of our website.
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