US News Rankings

US News Rankings September 13, 2013 With the release of the US News rankings this week comes the annual conversation of just how US News World Report calculates its rankings. As you may know, the US News World Report college rankings are based on an algorithm and, from time to time, this algorithm changes. This year marked a significant change to the algorithm as detailed in an Inside Higher Ed article entitled A Shift to Outcomes by Scott Jaschik. What do you think of the changes to the US News ranking algorithm? So what are the changes to the college ranking algorithm, you ask? As announced by US News World Report, the student selectivity component counts for only 12.5% of a colleges total score this year as opposed to 15% last year. As a sub-component of the student selectivity component, class rank now counts for 25% as opposed to 40% of the overall figure. But that means that something has to count more, right? So SAT/ACT scores are given more weight as a sub-component, rising from 50% to 65%. Peer assessment, which is based upon a survey of university presidents, falls from 25% of the algorithm for regional colleges to 22.5%. Its as of yet unclear if this change applies to national universities as well this year. Additionally, graduation and retention rates carry more weight this year, rising from 20% to 22.5%. What do you think about these changes to the US News ranking formula? Do you think other changes should be made? Do you think one university in particular should have been ranked higher or lower? Let us know your thoughts on the subject of the US News rankings by posting below. We look forward to hearing from you.