Kent State Falls in U.S. News Ranking
The magazine released its 2012 'Best Colleges' list today
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Kent State University fell in the 2012 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges ranking compared with the school's 2011 spot on the list.
The magazine released its annual rankings today, and Kent State landed at 194 to tie with eight other schools out of 1,600 total on the list.
In 2011, Kent State ranked 183 out of 1,400 listed colleges.
Kent State President Lester Lefton, who is out of town visiting family in California, said in prepared remarks he was pleased to see the university ranked on the list for two years in a row.
"For two years in a row, we are the only public university in Northeast Ohio to receive a spot in the prestigious first-tier list," Lefton said. "As students and parents navigate their way in reviewing options in higher education, Kent State proves once again with this third-party validation that we are a great university that deserves their attention and consideration."
Kent State placed in the Best National Universities category.
The listing is the 28th edition released by U.S. News & World Report. Harvard University and Princeton University tied for the top spot as the nation's best university.
Click here to see Kent State's listing.
Robin Anderson
10:25 pm on Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Hm...barely eked out a spot ahead of CSU & blew the doors off the UofA...but then ya got yer The OSU(55), Miami U-Oxford(90), Ohio U(124) & BGSU(177). No wonder the president of a "national university" noted for it's "excellence" would seek to limit his school's comparison to those in Northeast Ohio! I didn't know they offered a Doctorate of Spinology.
Chip Souza
9:46 am on Wednesday, September 14, 2011
You would think that this would be kept front page news and bring the University back to the spotlight. Kent State Truth Tribunal: https://www.facebook.com/KentStateTruthTribunal
Maybe not the right legacy the for this kind of list, but maybe the top of a different sort of list: Top Five Battles for Free Expression
Bobby Z.
2:57 pm on Wednesday, September 14, 2011
It's sad how badly this is misrepresented on KSU's home page. The first paragraph reads: "Kent State’s ranking is 194, tied with eight other schools out of more than 1,500 schools." Only later, near the bottom, is it mentioned that there are 280 universities in KSU's category.
In other words, it is never made clear that KSU didn't rank #194 out of 1,500, but rather #194 out of 280, hardly something to brag about.
Mike
8:03 am on Thursday, September 15, 2011
The headline should read Kent State ranked on prestigious list two years in a row. Or University of Akron not ranked at all!
Bobby Z this isn't a misrepresentation. Being ranked is an accomplishment. Look who isn't ranked. We should be proud we have a ranked school in our back yard that brings jobs, tax revenue, and more to our economy.
Robin Anderson
3:04 pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011
Sigh...where's a history major when ya need one. KSU has almost always, I believe, been "ranked" in the top 200 of USN&WR's Best Colleges special edition. However, under the prior ranking format, only the Top 100(two tiers of 50 each) received a numerical rank. The last two tiers(50 each) were ranked 3rd or 4th tier, alphabetically. A few years ago, seeking to assuage some ruffled feathers, USN&WR changed the format to give each of the Top 200 a numerical ranking. KSU has always been ranked in the 4th tier except for one year a few years ago when it eked out a 3rd tier(alphabetically) ranking and it appears that it's been a on a slippery slope downward ever since! So much for the priorities set by either the Administration or the Board of Trustees, past and present.
Jon Ridinger
8:12 pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011
http://education-portal.com/articles/College_Rankings_The_Good_the_Bad_and_the_Ugly_Behind_Assessing_Higher_Education.html
This is a good article on the whole issue of the rankings. It includes a little bit of history too. I've never been a fan of these rankings, but what bothers me more is how so few seem to look at WHY a school does or doesn't do well in a particular ranking. The article even mentions people who chose a school exclusively on its US News ranking. :: shaking my head :: It's all about what they're measuring and how. That's why KSU can be ranked 194th in the US according to US News but be ranked at a similar rank (196) in the world rankings from The Times Higher Education. They both measure different things and schools can do things to manipulate the various measurements.
Jon Ridinger
8:16 pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011
And it should be noted that in the Times rankings, KSU is 79th in the North American region (US and Canada). Again, different criteria, so different result.
Robin Anderson
9:02 pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011
While I'm not familiar with The Times Higher Education publication or the criteria they use to rank institutions of higher ed, I do know that USN&WR's methodology gives great consideration to an institution's programs devoted to ensuring the successful graduation of any given freshman class.
Jon Ridinger
11:49 pm on Thursday, September 15, 2011
That's one aspect of their methodology. There are many things they measure and if you read the article I linked, there are examples of how universities simply manipulate data to improve their ranking without any real improvement in quality. And what about those programs do they measure and how? Again, even those can be measured in vastly different ways depending on who is doing the survey. Not to say these rankings have NO value, but I obviously think people put *too much* value on them; same with the state report cards. Going to a high-ranking school doesn't mean it's going to be the best place for a particular student or that the program they wish to study there in is any good or vice versa.
Robin Anderson
1:25 pm on Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Completion rates low at Ohio colleges
Less than 30 percent get bachelor’s degrees in four years, study says
By Carol Biliczky, Beacon Journal staff writer. Published: September 28, 2011