Colleges are dropping out of U.S. News & World Report’s college ranking system. So what are the pros and cons of these rankings?
How do you effectively and equitably evaluate and rank a college? It’s not so easy.
While there are a few objective metrics that can evaluate a college, such a professor research output, endowment sizes, four-year graduation rates, and average earnings of post graduates, much of it is subjective. For example, how do you effectively evaluate the quality of courses and professors at each college, especially when many have different philosophies and approaches to teaching—many, if not all, that have equal credibility? Additionally, all colleges have different selections of academic and student resources at varying degrees, which is what makes them unique and different. US. News and World Report’s college rankings also weigh heavily standardized tests, but that more reflects the student body rather than instructional integrity (and this is even harder to measure now with so many test-optional colleges).
The ranking system also relies on self-reported data and information that can be manipulated and inflated toward higher scoring. And lastly, if you consider the top 50 or even top 100 colleges in the U.S., they are all of such strong quality that the scoring difference between them is marginal to barely existent, yet the perception of 1st place compared to 50 is significant in our outside perspectives of the colleges.
Below, are some of the major pros and cons to U.S. News and World Report’s college ranking system.
Pros of U.S News World Report College Rankings:
Provides a snapshot of the quality and reputation of various colleges and universities.
Helps students and parents make informed decisions about which colleges to consider.
Encourages colleges to improve and compete with each other to climb higher in the rankings.
Provides useful information on various factors such as graduation rates, financial aid, and student-faculty ratios.
Cons of U.S News World Report College Rankings:
The methodology used to rank colleges is controversial and often criticized for being arbitrary and not fully transparent.
The rankings place too much emphasis on standardized test scores, which can be an unfair measure of college quality.
The rankings can be misleading and cause undue stress and anxiety for students and parents.
The rankings can be manipulated by colleges, who may try to game the system by artificially inflating their scores in certain categories.
Overall, while the U.S News World Report College Rankings can be a useful tool in the college selection process, it should be taken with a grain of salt and used in conjunction with other resources and factors.
