20 July 2013 archive
College Rankings 0
The popularity of the US News & World Report’s annual College Issue has spawned numerous copycats, each trying to offer its own spin on how it rates colleges. It’s all about selling magazines. The more they move off the newsstand, the higher the advertising rates they can charge.
It’s more about the money than the value of the content. What does it really mean when you read about six year graduation rates, the average financial aid a student receives, the reported professor student ratio, and average loan burden upon graduation and SAT scores?
It is interesting, more and more colleges are either eschewing such assessments or not returning the self-reported questionnaires sent to them by the publications. But when a college is recognized as in the top 10 or Best of in a particular category they are not shy about emblazoning that recognition proudly across their website.
And yes, I am one of those that buy those magazines. I buy them because you are, and I want to be ready for your questions when you ask.
Why do you recommend the 41st ranked University of the South @ Sewanee for Carolyn instead of the well known 18th ranked Colgate University?
I appreciate such questions. More often than not, the answer has to do with a combination of factors. The academic profile of the student and learning style, how a student expresses interest in different majors (however vague they may be early on), financial parameters of the parents, campus ethos and the nature of the academic and career advising.
All of which we take into account when suggesting the starter list of fifteen colleges for a junior. I invite you to arrange a FREE get acquainted conversation with us. We work with students all over the world thanks to the Internet. Please click here for more information.