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E-mail Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2010 > August > 17 > Entry
U.S. News college rankings highlight three local schools
Three Miami Valley universities - Cedarville, Miami and Dayton - were recognized by the editors of U.S. News and World Report in their annual “America’s Best Colleges” issue published today, Aug. 17.
The University of Dayton broke the top 100 and ranked 99th of the top national universities. It also ranked 55th among private schools and eighth among Catholic institutions. Daniel J. Curran, UD president, in a statement credited the school’s taking “bold, forward-thinking steps,” as reason for the ranking. “The entire university community should take pride in being part of a top-tier university that continues to grow in pre-eminence.”
Miami University came in 34th of the nation’s top public national universities, 79th when privates were included and is second nationwide for commitment to teaching, the magazine found. David Hodge, Miami president, said in a news release it was “meaningful” for the magazine to recognize the school’s “deep commitment of our faculty and staff.”
Cedarville University ranked fifth in Midwestern regional colleges. “This independent evaluation affirms our efforts to equip students for life-long leadership and service,” said William E. Brown, school president.
U.S. News’ rankings come about a week after The Princeton Review published their 373 best colleges. UD made several of the review’s lists.
Rankings are not without controversy, and are often discounted by educators. U.S. News changed some of their methodology this year, particularly when it comes school’s “reputational” calculation. The Inside Higher Ed news blog has a good description of the changes that can be found here.
What’s your take? Do rankings matter?
Permalink | Comments (9) | Post your comment | Categories: Colleges and Universities
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By UD Alum
August 17, 2010 7:15 PM | Link to this
Miami came in 79th not 34th! I just checked. Check before you publish! Must be a Miami alum trying to make it better than it was!!!
By @James
August 17, 2010 6:57 PM | Link to this
James, undergrad rankings don’t really matter that much for many graduate programs, especially the professional schools - unless you go to a for-profit with stigma attached. I went to UD and know several others who, like myself, are now at top 10 grad programs in their chosen field. Grades and test scores typically trump all else, and a 4.0 from WSU isn’t much different from a 4.0 from Miami U, all else being equal. Miami U is a fine school, but it’s not exactly well-known outside of this region.
By james
August 17, 2010 2:18 PM | Link to this
Rankings matter when it comes to getting into grad school. Whether you agree or disagree… Graduates from Miami have a MUCH easier time getting into choice grad schools than graduates of Wright State. And since we’ve entered the days where graduate degrees are the new bachelor’s degrees, rankings matter more than ever. The downside of this rankings game is that Ohio’s Public University Graduate Programs have an overwhelming tendency to [whimsically] choose well heeled, out-of-staters OR graduates of pricey private colleges. Ohio’s public graduate schools (And many of OHio’s public undergraduate schools) have become out-of-reach or inaccessable to the majority of graduates of OHio’s public universities… …and they’re also inaccessible to the very Ohioans who pay taxes to support their public universities.
By Ask employers who produces the best grads...
August 17, 2010 2:06 PM | Link to this
In terms of IT, UD is just not a very good school. As someone who has been hiring grads from all the local schools (Wright State, Ohio State, Cincinnati, Miami), both UD and Miami grads come out woefully unprepared. Meanwhile, UC, Ohio State, and WSU grads continue to excel. What does that mean? Pick a school based on your major, and not based on some formula provided by a magazine.
By James
August 17, 2010 2:03 PM | Link to this
Rankings matter when it comes to getting into grad school. Whether you agree or disagree… Graduates from Miami have a MUCH easier time getting into choice grad schools than graduates of Wright State. And since we’ve entered the days where graduate school is the new bachelor’s degree, rankings matter more than ever.
By college grad
August 17, 2010 1:25 PM | Link to this
What was UD’s ranking last year? Where is Wright State? What is Miami’s overall ranking?
By Gary
August 17, 2010 1:24 PM | Link to this
This does provide important information for students in thier college search. It is, however, important that they do not get too tied up in the qualitative rankings but more on the data (i.e. graduation rate, job placement in the major they are seeking, student demographics, etc.). These are more important factors to a successful college experience for the prospective student.
By graduate
August 17, 2010 1:19 PM | Link to this
What was UD’s ranking last year? Where is Wright State? What is Miami’s overall ranking?
By Maxwell Powers
August 17, 2010 12:31 PM | Link to this
The rankings are very helpful to students who are beginning their college search. In the old days, students often decided where to go based on gossip and word-of-mouth. Now, they have some data to work with. That said, the numbers are only the numbers. There is much more to a college than what a formula spits out. Take UD’s ranking of 99. On the one hand, it shows improvement. On the other, it’s still a lot more expensive than many of the schools ranked higher than it. So, take the ratings for what they are: one group’s OPINION of what the best colleges in the country are.