myUsearch blog

Today we have a guest from Emily Goll. Emily is a graduate of Whitman College with a degree in English literature. She currently lives in Seattle, Washington and writes for GuidetoOnlineSchools.com, a publisher of accredited online college and online degree information.

The reputation of your college is incredibly important. It will help to determine the rigors of your academics, the jobs you are eligible for, and the quality of faculty that teach at your school. As a result, most graduating seniors who hope to attend a four-year institution spend the months before their applications are due pouring over books and magazine articles that feature college rankings.

Such articles and books cover everything about a school from the cost of tuition, to the student to faculty ratio, to the academic rating, and to the admissions selectivity rating. Not only do these types of lists help students narrow down their choices, but they paint a clearer picture of the schools for each individual. This can strongly help a student make a well-thought out, informed decision when choosing where to obtain his or her bachelor’s degree.

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I was just reading an article this morning about women’s professional tennis and the flaws in its ranking system. This time of year, I also see weekly reviews with different people giving their opinion about the various ranking systems in college football. There are computer programs that use data analysis, coaches votes, win/loss and strength-of-schedule ranking systems, and different ranking systems based on the weight of each different criteria. Honestly, I find it to be a bit of overkill. But, what about US college rankings? So how do the US college ranking systems work? Which US college ranking organization is most reliable? (more…)

Last month, the Princeton Review released their annual college rankings, listing off the nation’s biggest party schools, best college towns and nicest dorms. And while you may be thinking about those factors as you shop for schools, maybe it’s worthwhile to look ahead: PayScale.com recently released an interesting report of college graduate salary statistics. Is your dream school worth the price of tuition?

 photo by L. E. MacDonald

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We all see the college rankings published by corporations, such as U.S. News and World Report, Princeton Review and many more. Are these fair and honest? Do they have the best information to rank a school? Are they influenced by money?

I cannot answer these questions, but I do know that I’d rather learn about a college from students, professors, and others who are ACTUALLY part of the college.  It’s just like buying a TV.  I want to take advice from people that have actually experienced what I’m looking for. 

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