The College Rankings and Methodology Thread

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

Anyone using Niche to rank universities instantly loses credibility.

1. They factor in neighborhood safety and quality which instantly puts schools in large urban settings, particularly Jesuit schools which are usually in rougher neighborhoods, at a major disadvantage.

2. They factor in a ton of other useless metrics. Diversity? Loan amount? I went to a CPS HS then a suburban HS that was even more diverse than my CPS school, it's great for diverse thought but not correlated to great school or else cheaper directional schools would own the more expensive private schools. Loan amount? This is idiotic, it has zero to do with college quality.

Bottom line is Niche is a joke, in an attempt to go wayyyy overboard with analysis Fieldhouse Flyer has a tendency to not review data.

MUBoxer – I can assure you that I review the data I post very carefully before I post it.

It appears that you are the one who has a tendency not to review data. Loan amount is a Forbes criterium which is not used by Niche, so you have just trashed the Niche Rankings because of Forbes’ methodology. See Part 19 below.

Also, Niche assigns a 0.025 weighting factor to Safety Rating and a 0.05 weighting factor to Diversity. The other rating services do far worse.

Since you decided to make it personal, this post is for you, MUBoxer.

I have followed College Rankings very closely since their inception. Below is a post that I prepared last spring concerning the 2019 college rankings. I have deleted most of it for this HLOH post (for the sake of brevity), but I would be happy to post any of the deleted sections if requested. Those of you who read my posts already know of my considerable interest in the history of things, so I’ll start with that before proceeding.
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History of College Rankings Services

1917 • Weekly news magazine Forbes founded in New York.

1933 • Weekly news magazine U.S. News[/url] founded, headquartered in in New York.

1946 • Weekly news magazine World Report founded, headquartered in in New York.

1948 • Weekly news magazine U.S. News & World Report founded by merger.

1954 • Ivy League founded, headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey.

1979 • Big East Conference founded, headquartered in in New York.

1981 • A company named ’The Princeton Review’ is founded as a college admission services company offering test preparation services, tutoring and admissions resources, and online courses. The company is headquartered in New York City, and is privately held. Despite the title, it is not associated with Princeton University.

1982 • Atlantic 10 Conference founded, headquartered in in New York.

1983 • U.S. News & World Report publishes its first "America's Best Colleges" report in its news magazine. The rankings have been compiled and published annually since 1987.

1992 • The Princeton Review publishes its first "Best Colleges" rankings, some 11 years after the company was founded, and nine years after U.S. News & World Report published its first "America's Best Colleges" report .

1994 • The Wall Street Journal published disclosures about institutions flagrantly manipulating data in order to move up in the rankings in U.S. News and other popular college guides.

1995 • , Reed College refused to participate in U.S. News & World Report annual survey. According to Reed's Office of Admissions, "Reed College has actively questioned the methodology and usefulness of college rankings ever since the magazine's best-colleges list first appeared in 1983, despite the fact that the issue ranked Reed among the top ten national liberal arts colleges". Reed's rankings were then artificially decreased by U.S. News after they stopped sending data to U.S. News & World Report.

1996 • On September 23rd, Stanford President Gerhard Casper sent a letter to James Fallows, editor of U.S. News & World Report, stating: "As the president of a university that is among the top-ranked universities, I hope I have the standing to persuade you that much about these rankings - particularly their specious formulas and spurious precision - is utterly misleading."

1997 • In January, president of Alma College, Alan Stone asked 480 colleges to boycott the U.S. News & World Report Rankings due to the peer assessment survey which counts for 22.5% of a college's ranking. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, in 1996, Alma College surveyed 158 colleges about the rankings. The result of the survey indicated that "84 per cent of the respondents admitted that they were unfamiliar with some of the institutions they had been asked to rank. Almost 44 per cent indicated that they 'tended to leave responses for unfamiliar schools blank.' " Stone stated, "this makes me wonder just how many votes are being considered for each school's academic-reputation ranking."

1998 • Stanford posted an alternative database on its website stating: "This page is offered in contrast to commercial guides that purport to "rank" colleges; such rankings are inherently misleading and inaccurate. Stanford believes the following information, presented without arbitrary formulas, provides a better foundation for prospective students and their families to begin comparing and contrasting schools." It has since been posted annually as the "Stanford University Common Data Set."

1998 • In the autumn, Luke Skurman, a San Francisco native, enrols as a freshman at Carnegie Mellon University.

1998 • Princeton University is ranked No. 1 in the U.S. News & World Report rankings.

1999 • Amy Graham is appointed as the new lead statistician for the U.S. News & World Report’s College Rankings. Ms. Graham changed the rankings formula to one she considered to be more statistically valid, and the California Institute of Technology jumped to first place.

2000 • In the summer, Amy Graham leaves U.S. News, and the rankings system is modified again, pushing Princeton back to No. 1 in the rankings.

2000 • In the autumn, Carnegie Mellon University junior Luke Skurman enrols in an undergraduate entrepreneurship class and begins work on a new college rankings methodology for his class project. It can be taken as fact that Luke Skurman would have been aware of the college rankings published by the U.S. News & World Report and by The Princeton Review, and their respective methodologies. Being a California native, it is also highly likely that Luke would have been aware of the controversial rise and fall of the California Institute of Technology in the U.S. News & World Report’s college rankings as well as Stanford’s war against the U.S. News college rankings. Therefore, it can safely be presumed that Luke Skurman consciously set out to ‘build a better mousetrap’ for his class project.

2002 • Luke Skurman complete his entrepreneurship class and new college rankings, published them under the name “CollegeProwler”, receives his Bachelor of Science degree from Carnegie Mellon University, and enrols as a graduate student at Carnegie Mellon. In addition to its burgeoning popularity among its target audience, CollegeProwler has won awards at Carnegie Mellon and in Pittsburgh. CollegeProwler won Carnegie Mellon's 2002 Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Association's Business Plan Competition and received $500 from the School of Industrial Administration. Accountant Ernst & Young's Enterprise Creation Competition named CollegeProwler as one of the top nine national finalists.

2002 • In September 2002, CEO Luke Skurman and the CollegeProwler staff travelled to Salt Lake City to officially launch their company at the National Association for College Admission Counselling (NACAC) Conference. They left the conference with more than 700 business leads, including those from college admission staffs, high school guidance counsellors, and major publishers.

2004 • Luke Skurman receives his Master of Science degree from Carnegie Mellon University.

2005 • College Prowler was recognized by Fast Company for being one of the 50 fastest-growing companies in the nation.

2007 • College Prowler (which produced only printed guidebooks from 2002-06) makes their content available online for a subscription fee.

2007 • On June 19th, during the annual meeting of the Annapolis Group, members discussed the letter to college presidents asking them not to participate in the "reputation survey" section of the U.S. News & World Report survey (this section comprises 25% of the ranking). As a result, "a majority of the approximately 80 presidents at the meeting said that they did not intend to participate in the U.S. News reputational rankings in the future."

2008 • CollegeProwler became embroiled in a scandal known as "Facebookgate" when hundreds of spurious "Class of 2013" groups were created on Facebook for the purpose of promoting CollegeProwler. Such groups would normally be created by actual students or colleges themselves. According to CEO Luke Skurman, "The original purpose was to use these groups as a way to inform students that they can access a free guide about their new college on our site." He also added, "No employee or anyone else associated with College Prowler has used these groups to send out messages or wall posts." College Prowler later removed all administrative access from the 125 groups, admitting "It was clearly over the line".

2008 • In July, CollegeProwler CEO Luke Skurman is appointed as a Trustee of Carnegie Mellon University – a position he still holds.

2008 • Forbes publishes its first "Top Colleges" rankings.

2009 • CollegeProwler removes their subscription fee, making all web content free.

2009 • The New York Times reported that: "40 percent of the Forbes Media LLC enterprise was sold ... for a reported $300 million, setting the value of the enterprise at $750 million". Three years later, Mark M. Edmiston of AdMedia Partners observed, "It's probably not worth half of that now". It was later revealed that the price had been $264 million.

2009 • In January, U.S. News & World Report becomes a biweekly publication, citing the decline of the magazine’s circulation and advertising.

2009 • In June, U.S. News & World Report becomes a monthly publication, due to the continuing decline of the magazine’s circulation and advertising.

2010 • On November 5th, a U.S. News & World Report internal memo was sent on to the staff of the magazine informing them that the "December issue will be our last print monthly sent to subscribers, whose remaining print and digital replica subscriptions will be filled by other publishers."

2013 • CEO Luke Skurman changes the name of his company from “CollegeProwler” to “Niche”.

2013 • The Big East Conference becomes a ten-member, private-school-only conference and begins play in the 2014-15 season.

2014 • The popularity of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings is reflected in its 2014 release, which brought 2.6 million unique visitors and 18.9 million page views to usnews.com in one day. Traffic came from over 3,000 sites, including Facebook and Google.

2016 • Niche CEO Luke Skurman receives Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year - Western Pennsylvania & West Virginia award in June.

2018 • Niche raises $6.6 million and aims to be one of Pittsburgh’s ‘game-changing’ startup companies. The Pittsburgh-based startup, a ranking and review site for K-12 schools, colleges, and neighborhoods around the country, today announced a $6.6 million Series B funding round led by Allen & Company LLC and Grit Capital Partners. Its platform uses more than 120 million ratings and reviews from real people along with hoards of data that rank schools and neighborhoods, helping inform students and parents about important decisions. Traffic is up, too, with 8.8 million visits in January and 51 million uniques last year. Niche CEO Luke Skurman said: ”Half of college-bound students have a Niche account. Google continues to recognize us as a best in class site.”

2019 • Niche growth accelerates and subscription revenue grows by 200% in 2018. Today [February 7, 2019] Niche announced that it has added a $2 million investment to its Series B financing, bringing the total Series B proceeds to $8.6 million. Every year, over 60 million people use Niche to choose the schools, jobs, and neighborhoods.

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2019 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY THREAD
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1. Introduction
2. Methodology – U.S. News College Rankings
3. Methodology – Niche College Rankings
4. Methodology – Forbes College Rankings
5. Methodology – The Princeton Review Rankings
6. Schools of Interest
7. The U.S. News ‘Best Colleges 2019’ Rankings
8. The Niche ‘Best Colleges in America 2019’ Rankings
9. The Niche ‘Best Catholic Colleges in America 2019’ Rankings
10. The Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2018’ Rankings
11. The Princeton Review ‘Best 384 Colleges 2019 Edition’ Rankings
12. Analysis of Data
13. Analysis: Forbes’ Room and Board, and ‘Other’ Living Expenses
14. Analysis: Calculation of Forbes 2018 'Implied Net Price'
15. Analysis: The Effect of U.S. News Dividing the Data Population Into 10 Different Categories
16. Analysis: The Effect of U.S. News’ Six Subdivisions on the Rankings of Big East Schools
17. Analysis: Which College Ratings Service Gives the ‘Best’ Rankings to Big East Schools?
18. The Backlash Against the U.S. News College Rankings
19. The Problems with the Forbes’ College Rankings
20. The Princeton Review Rankings
21. The Niche Rankings
22. Ranking the College Ranking Services
23. The Best Colleges in America 2019
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1. Introduction

The OT: Creighton moves from Midwest to National University thread caused me:

(1) to wonder about the reasons for the differences in the school rankings by various college ranking services, and

(2) to wonder if it can be demonstrated that some college ranking services are better than others?

The purpose of this comprehensive study is to answer those two questions. Please note that this thread is intended only for those of you who share a similar interest in this fascinating and controversial topic.

For an illustrated overview of the topic, please see the following well-diagrammed article from 2016, followed by other key articles.

Comparing College Rankings: U.S. News, Niche, The Princeton Review, and Forbes – BestCollegeReviews.org – 2016

All the College Ranking Lists You Should Read: U.S. News, Forbes, and Niche – PrepScholar.com – August 16, 2018

How To Rank College Ranking Sites – Forbes - August 29, 2018

1. U. S. News' 2018 Best Colleges, 3. Forbes, 7. The Princeton Review's Best 384 Colleges 2019, 8. Niche

Rankings of Universities in the United States - Wikipedia

1. RANKINGS
… 1.9 Forbes Rankings … 1.12 Niche Rankings … 1.13 The Princeton Review Rankings … 1.20 U.S. News Rankings

2. CRITICISMS OF THE U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT’S COLLEGE RANKINGS
… 2.1 The 2007 Movement Against The U.S. News & World Report's College Rankings

Table 1(a): The ‘Big Four’ College Ratings Services

• The U.S. News Best Colleges 2019 Rankings were first published in 1983 and are the most widely quoted of their kind in the United States. The U.S. News Best Colleges database contains more than 1,800 schools and the 2019 Edition lists 312 National Universities, with ranking numbers assigned to only the Top 226 schools. The US News also ranks what they call ‘Regional Universities’ in four geographic designations: North (196 schools listed), South (148 schools listed), Midwest (172 schools listed), and West (140 schools listed), for a total of 968 schools listed. I have not found any other College Ranking Services subdivides the population of universities into multiple categories before ranking the schools. Rather than assigning a unique sequential ranking number (as the other college ratings services do), the vast majority of the schools ranked by U.S. News are ‘tied’ with a few or many other schools in a designated ‘tier’. The U.S. News’ [unpublished] internally-computed raw scores are then rounded, and schools with ‘similar’ raw scores are lumped together as a ‘tie’. [Presumably in this instance, in order to prevent sixth-listed Yale being ranked below fourth-listed M.I.T and fifth-listed University of Chicago. These three schools along with third-listed Columbia are all lumped together and assigned a ranking of ‘#3(Tied)’ by U.S. News, followed by #7 Stanford.]

• The Princeton Review Best 384 Colleges 2019 Rankings were first published in 1992. For the 2019 Edition, the Princeton Review surveyed 138,000 students from across the country. The Princeton Review does not rank schools overall 1-384, but lists the Top 384 schools alphabetically and provides 62 lists of Top 20 schools in 62 different categories. The Princeton Review added five colleges to their 2019 edition: Butler University, Drury University, Marlboro College, Michigan State University, and Oregon State University. Unlike other college ratings services, The Princeton Review requires a free registration in order to access all of their information, or to access a given webpage more than one time. Creating a free Princeton Review account took me less than a minute, and is well worth the effort, as The Princeton Review has vast amounts of information and numerous interesting rankings.

• The Niche Best Colleges in America 2019 Rankings were first published in 2002 under the name “College Prowler”. In 2013 the company was renamed ‘Niche’. The Niche Best Colleges in America ranking is based on rigorous analysis of academic, admissions, financial, and student life data from the U.S. Department of Education along with millions of reviews from students and alumni. The ranking compares more than 1,000 top colleges and universities in the U.S., with ranking numbers assigned to the Top 880 schools. The Niche Rankings uses the term “Net Price”, which they define as: “The average cost after financial aid for students receiving grant or scholarship aid, as reported by the college”. Unlike other college ratings services, Niche assigns an Overall Niche Grade (A+, A, A-, B+, etc.) to each reviewed university.

• The Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges’ 2018 Rankings were first published in 2008, and ranks the Top 650 schools 1-650. The Forbes Rankings uses the term “Cost” and defines it as “the estimated total cost of attendance for out-of-state students living on campus in 2017-2018. This estimate includes the reported average cost of tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, and ‘other’ living expenses. This figure is an estimate and not a guarantee of the actual amount the student may be charged.” The 2019 Edition of Forbes’ Rankings is scheduled to be published in August, 2019.

Table 1(b): Examples of Information Provided in Scrollable Rankings Tables, and the Formats of ‘School Pages’

Click on the Georgetown links below to see the format of each ratings service’s ‘School Page for Georgetown. The information displayed in the Table below is the information which is displayed along with the school’s name in the scrollable Rankings Tables for each of the four rankings services.

Forbes 2018: #12 Georgetown University • Cost: $71,580 • Average Financial Aid: $40,346

U.S. News 2019: 22(T). Georgetown University • Tuition and Fees: $54,104 • Enrolment: 7,463

Niche 2019: 22. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520

The Princeton Review 2019: Georgetown University • 7,459 Enrolled

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12. Analysis of Data

Financial Data Mined in PART 1

Institution ………………………………………… Endowment [1] … Cost [2] … Tuition and Fees [3] … Net Price [4] … Average Financial Aid [6]

Harvard University ………………………. $37,100,000,000 ………. $69,600 ………. $50,420 ………. $17,030 ………. $48,195
Yale University …………………………….. $27,800,000,000 ………. $71,290 ………. $53,430 ………. $18,053 ………. $48,126
Princeton University ……………………. $23,800,000,000 ………. $66,150 ………. $47,140 ………. $16,302 ………. $44,128
University of Pennsylvania ………….. $12,200,000,000 ………. $71,715 ………. $55,584 ………. $24,539 ………. $43,856
Columbia University …………………….. $10,000,000,000 ………. $74,199 ………. $59,430 ………. $22,824 ………. $46,127
Cornell University ………………………….. $7,200,000,000 ………. $70,321 ………. $55,188 ………. $31,449 ………. $35,445
Dartmouth College …………………………. $5,000,000,000 ………. $71,827 ………. $55,584 ………. $22,303 ………. $45,867
Brown University ……………………………. $3,500,000,000 ………. $71,050 ………. $55,656 ………. $25,651 ………. $40,116

Stanford University ………………………. $24,800,000,000 ………. $69,109 ………. $51,354 ………. $16,562 ………. $47,782
Mass. Institute of Technology ………. $16,400,000,000 ………. $67,430 ………. $51,832 ………. $22,230 ………. $41,674
University of Chicago …………………….. $8,200,000,000 ………. $75,735 ………. $57,006 ………. $34,834 ………. $39,032
University of Notre Dame ……………. $13,100,000,000 ………. $69,395 ………. $53,391 ………. $27,453 ………. $38,080

Georgetown University …………………. $1,770,000,000 ………. $71,580 ………. $54,105 ………. $27,420 ………. $40,346
Villanova University ………………………….. $715,000,000 ………. $68,231 ………. $53,458 ………. $35,491 ………. $29,321
St. John's University …………………………. $648,000,000 ………. $59,865 ………. $41,760 ………. $25,981 ………. $24,963
DePaul University …………………………….. $596,000,000 ………. $56,275 ………. $39,975 ………. $32,927 ………. $19,085
Marquette University ……………………….. $550,000,000 ………. $55,273 ………. $41,870 ………. $32,377 ………. $17,935
Creighton University …………………………. $448,000,000 ………. $53,452 ………. $39,916 ………. $31,481 ………. $19,913
Seton Hall University ………………………… $243,000,000 ………. $57,090 ………. $42,170 ………. $28,700 ………. $23,572
Providence College …………………………… $213,000,000 ………. $64,984 ………. $50,390 ………. $36,099 ………. $24,941
Butler University ………………………………. $174,000,000 ………. $56,740 ………. $41,120 ………. $38,051 ………. $18,926
Xavier University ………………………………. $151,000,000 ………. $52,380 ………. $38,530 ………. $30,190 ………. $21,463

Saint Louis University …………………… $1,230,000,000 ………. $57,214 ………. $43,996 ………. $31,718 ………. $21,675
Fordham University …………………………. $739,000,000 ………. $72,239 ………. $52,248 ………. $38,503 ………. $25,892
University of Dayton ………………………… $524,000,000 ………. $57,680 ………. $42,900 ………. $35,077 ………. $19,511
Saint Joseph's University ………………… $279,000,000 ………. $60,854 ………. $44,974 ………. $35,290 ………. $22,407
Duquesne University ………………………… $261,000,000 ………. $52,108 ………. $38,178 ………. $30,540 ………. $19,310
La Salle University …………………………….. $88,000,000 ………. $45,476 ………. $30,710 ………. $26,276 ………. $26,430
St. Bonaventure University ………………. $60,000,000 ………. …. [6] … ………. $34,301 ………. $22,409 ………. …. [7] …

Virginia Commonwealth U. …………. $1,840,000,000 ………. $51,204 ………. $35,138 ………. $20,741 …………. $9,207
University of Connecticut ………………. $447,000,000 ………. $53,112 ………. $38,098 ………. $18,699 ………. $12,877
Gonzaga University …………………………. $276,000,000 ………. $57,350 ………. $43,210 ………. $34,085 ………. $19,529

[1] – The Endowment amounts were mined from Wikipedia (from the appropriate Conference webpages were available). The 32 Schools of Interest are sorted by Endowment in Table 6(d) above.

[2] – The Cost amounts were mined from the Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges’ 2018 Rankings. Forbes defines “Cost” as ”the estimated total cost of attendance for out-of-state students living on campus in 2017-2018. This estimate includes the reported average cost of tuition and fees, books and supplies, room and board, and ‘other’ living expenses. This figure is an estimate and not a guarantee of the actual amount the student may be charged.”

[3] – The Tuition and Fees amounts were mined from the U.S. News Best Colleges 2019 Rankings.

[4] – The Net Price amounts were mined from the Niche Best Colleges in America 2019 Rankings. Niche defines “Net Price” as “The average cost after financial aid for students receiving grant or scholarship aid, as reported by the college”.

[5] – Basic Relationships Between Variables[/b]

…… Forbes’ Cost = (tuition and fees) + (books and supplies) + (room and board, and ‘other’ living expenses)

…… Niche’s Net Price = (tuition and fees) + (books and supplies) + (room and board, and ‘other’ living expenses) – (average financial aid)
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17 Analysis: Which College Ratings Service Gives the ‘Best’ Rankings to Big East Schools?

17.1 Issue: College Ratings Services - ‘Best’ Rankings for Big East Schools.

17.2 Question: Which College Ratings Service Gives the ‘Best’ Rankings to Big East Schools?

17.3 Answer: There is no objective answer to this important question because the population sizes (i.e., number of schools) used by Niche, Forbes, and U.S. News are significantly different. In order for direct comparisons to be valid and meaningful, all three ratings services must use the same population size with the exact same schools comprising the population – something which has clearly not occurred.

The other problem with answering the question hinges on the definition of ‘best’. Best published rankings (‘raw scores’) of Big East schools ? Or best percentile ? (i.e., best average placement of Big East schools relative to the population size of the dataset). Table 20(a) below shows both (noting that the 95th percentile always means 95% of the other values lie below it, and 5% lie above it.)

Table 17(a): Analysis: Average Ranking and Average Percentile of Big East Schools

236 • AVERAGE RANKING OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS – Niche (population size = 880 ranked schools)
208 • AVERAGE RANKING OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS – Forbes (population size = 650 ranked schools)
92 • AVERAGE RANKING OF 6 BIG EAST SCHOOLS - US News (population size = 226 ranked National Universities)

Percentile Calculations: Average Percentile of Big East School Rankings:

…… Number of schools ranked worse than the Average Ranking of Big East schools = (population size) - (Average Ranking of Big East schools)

…… Average Percentile of Big East School Rankings = (100)x[(No. of schools ranked worse)/(population size)]

73 = (100)x(880-236)/880 • Average Percentile of 10 Big East Schools - Niche
68 = (100)x(650-208)/650 • Average Percentile of 10 Big East Schools - Forbes
59 = (100)x(226-92)/226 • Average Percentile of 6 Big East Schools - U.S. News

Niche ranks 73% of the 880 ranked schools WORSE than the Average Ranking of Big East schools.
Forbes ranks 68% of the 650 ranked schools WORSE than the Average Ranking of Big East schools.
U.S. News ranks 59% of the 226 ranked National Universities WORSE than the Average Ranking of Big East schools.

It can be seen from the calculations above that as more schools are added to the size of the population, the Average Big East Ranking becomes worse, but the Average Percentile of Big East School Rankings becomes better. To further illustrate this point, I’ll rerun the calculations above, substituting St. John’s rankings for the Average Big East Ranking:

17.7 Confessions from the Data:

US News gives the Big East schools the best raw score (average ranking), but ranks only 59% of the ranked National Universities WORSE than the Average Ranking of Big East schools – which is directly attributable to US News having the smallest dataset, consisting of only 226 schools.

Niche ranks 73% of the ranked National Universities WORSE than the Average Ranking of Big East schools, but gives the Big East schools the worst raw score (average ranking) – which is directly attributable to Niche having the largest dataset, consisting of 880 schools.
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18. The Backlash Against the U.S. News College Rankings

For an overview, here are some excerpts from the two articles listed in 1. Introduction:

18.1 Rankings of Universities in the United States - Wikipedia
… 1.20 U.S. News Rankings

U.S. News determined the relative weights of their weighting factors and changes them over time. The National Opinion Research Center reviewed the methodology and stated that the weights "lack any defensible empirical or theoretical basis". The first four of the listed factors account for the great majority of the U.S. News ranking and the "reputational measure" (which surveys high-level administrators at similar institutions about their perceived quality ranking of each college and university) is especially important to the final ranking.

A New York Times article reported that, given the U.S. News weighting methodology, "it's easy to guess who's going to end up on top: the Big Three, Harvard, Yale and Princeton round out the first three essentially every year. When asked how he knew his system was sound, Mel Elfin (M.A. Harvard University, 1952) the rankings' founder, often answered that ”he knew it because those three schools always landed on top.“

A 2010 study by the University of Michigan found that university rankings in the United States significantly affect institutions' applications and admissions. The research analyzed the effects of the U.S. News & World Report rankings, showing a lasting effect on college applications and admissions by students in the top 10% of their class. In addition, they found that rankings influence survey assessments of reputation by college presidents at peer institutions, such that ”rankings and reputation are becoming much more similar over time.”

18.2 Rankings of Universities in the United States – Wikipedia

… 2. Criticisms of the U.S. News & World Report’s College Rankings

Critics charged that U.S. News intentionally changed its methodology every year so that the rankings change and they can sell more magazines. A San Francisco Chronicle article argues that [/i]"almost all of US News factors are redundant and can be boiled down to one characteristic: the size of the college or university's endowment."[/i]

Some higher education experts, like Kevin Carey of Education Sector, have argued that U.S. News & World Report's college rankings system is merely a list of criteria that mirrors the superficial characteristics of elite colleges and universities. According to Carey, "The U.S. News ranking system is deeply flawed. Instead of focusing on the fundamental issues of how well colleges and universities educate their students and how well they prepare them to be successful after college, the magazine's rankings are almost entirely a function of three factors: fame, wealth, and exclusivity."

18.3 How To Rank College Ranking Sites – Forbes - August 29, 2018

The U. S. News's Best Colleges is the grandaddy of all the lists. Over the years its methodologies have changed and a few schools have been caught fudging their numbers or gaming the rankings. Unfortunately, some trustee boards put stock in the rankings and heads can roll if a school slips. This list and its creators have assumed an arrogance over the years similar to the College Board's. Their attitude is "Don't like our rankings? What're you gonna do about it?"

It has now been 25 years since the 1994 The Wall Street Journal published disclosures about institutions flagrantly manipulating data in order to move up in the rankings in U.S. News. Others soon followed, and for decades such articles have become an annual event. Here is the latest round:

18.4 15 Things to Know About U.S. News’ College Rankings - TheCollegeSolution.com - May 8, 2018

While U.S. News and World Report’s college rankings are wildly popular, few families know much about how they are created. Before you place too much faith in U.S. News’ college rankings, here are 15 things that you should know about them:

1. U.S. News relies on rankings to stay alive.
2. U.S. News’ college rankings have encouraged institutional bad behavior.
3. The college rankings formula can be gamed.
4. Popularity is a big ratings factor.
5. U.S. News measures six-year graduation rates.
6. Rankings encourage colleges to favor affluent students.
7. Rankings encourage the use of merit scholarships.
8. Elite schools are the exception to merit awards.
9. Rankings encourage admission tricks
10. Rankings don’t measure what’s important.
11. Rankings encourage cheating.
12. Rankings encourage debt.
13. Don’t believe the numbers.
14. Use U.S. News as a tip sheet.
15. U.S. News is here to stay. A few years ago, Brian Kelly, the U.S. News editor made this promise during an press interview: “You can love us or hate us, but we’re not going away.”

18.5 14 Reasons Why US News College Rankings are Meaningless – LiberalArtsColleges.com - August, 2018

US News and World Report released its 2018 US News College Rankings. Parents, high school guidance counselors, students, and even the colleges themselves eagerly await the rankings so they can brag and attempt to impress others with the numbers and hierarchies.

We’re here to tell you that the 2018 US News College Rankings are useless. Unproductive. Meaningless. Even harmful. It is time to expose the shortcomings. Here, we outline the main problems with the US News College Rankings, along with examples and consequences of the nonsense we’re talking about.

The Major Problems with the US News College Rankings Are:

• They are inconsistent
• They are missing critical pieces of information
• They use a bogus “Reputation” measure
• They encourage cheating and schools game the system
• They lead to overall negative outcomes

Let’s look at each of these areas in detail and explore the 14 reasons why these rankings are meaningless.

Inconsistency in the US News College Rankings:

The metrics used by US News College Rankings are changing constantly, so it’s impossible to make meaningful comparisons between schools from year to year. Is this a tactic to get rankings to shift slightly to keep people interested, or is it really necessary to change the ranking system from year to year?

Reason #1 – Unstable rankings and irregular shifts continue to be a problem for US News.
Reason #2 – Inconsistencies cause problems for students.
Reason #3 – Flawed metrics have persisted for over a decade.
Reason #4 – Moving up the rankings has nothing to do with improving the student’s experience.
Reason #5 – Failure to adapt.
Reason #6 – Failure to consider student debt load.
Reason #7 – Doesn’t take into account the student experience.

The Bogus “Reputation” Measure

US News asks for “peer assessments” from various college presidents, high school counselors, admissions directors, etc. They ask about “intangibles” such as “faculty dedication to teaching.” This can turn the rankings into a popularity contest, fueled by existing prejudices, and allowing prestigious reputations to work in a positive feedback loop to reinforce themselves. This reputation measure comprises more than 20 percent of the overall ranking.

Reason #8 – The popularity contest.
Reason #9 – Skewed rankings by insiders.
Reason #10 – When colleges refuse to participate, US News penalizes them.
Reason #11 – The US News rankings cause institutions to cheat.
Reason #12 – Schools know how to work the system… and they do.
Reason #13 – Rankings lead to higher tuition.
Reason #14 – When students choose colleges based on US News rankings, they’re in trouble.

18.6 8 More Colleges Submitted Incorrect Data for Rankings – InsideHigherEd.com – August 27, 2018

U.S. News will consider them unranked for the rest of this rankings year, but that punishment will last only a few weeks.

Eight of the colleges ranked a year ago submitted information that was sufficiently incorrect that it would have changed their places in the rankings. And so U.S. News has declared them to be "unranked," a punishment that lasts until September 10th, when the new edition comes out.

The eight additional colleges reported to have submitted incorrect data follow other incidents this year, which has seen an uptick in the number of colleges whose rankings were based on incorrect information. In one of those cases -- involving the business school of Temple University -- officials have admitted that incorrect data were submitted intentionally and for several years for several programs. Some of the eight new colleges are blaming human error, not malice, for the flaws in their data. Others are blaming U.S. News.

U.S. News has always said that colleges themselves must audit the data they submit.

18.7 How Much Attention Should You Pay To U.S. News' College Rankings? - Forbes - September 10, 2018

As writer and best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell once pointed out in a scathing critique of U.S. News' rankings in the New Yorker, “There’s no direct way to measure the quality of an institution—how well a college manages to inform, inspire, and challenge its students. So the U.S. News algorithm relies instead on proxies for quality—and the proxies for educational quality turn out to be flimsy at best.”

But perhaps the most damning statement about the U.S. News Rankings comes from U.S. News themselves:

”Hard OBJECTIVE data alone determine each school's rank.

We survey top academics – presidents, provosts, and deans of admissions – asking them to rate the academic quality of peer institutions with which they are familiar on a scale of 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished). To get another set of important opinions, U.S. News also surveyed nearly 24,400 counselors at public, private and parochial high schools from all 50 states and Washington, D.C.”

ALL opinion polls (surveys) produce SUBJECTIVE data.

Therefore, their assertion that ”Hard objective data alone determine each school's rank.” is, by definition, deliberately untruthful.
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19. The Problems with the Forbes’ College Rankings

In August 2008, Forbes published their first annual list of "America's Best Colleges". It didn’t take long for the fallout to arrive.

19.1 Forbes college rankings. Can it get any more absurd? – College Admissions Partners – August 14, 2008

Forbes magazine has come out with a new college ranking system in an apparent attempt to compete with US News. The system used by Forbes is in my opinion the most ridiculous system yet devised. I would be more impressed if they just wandered down the street asking people for their opinion on the best colleges.

Here is what the system is based on: 25% of the ranking is based on evaluations from [ulr=https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/]RateMyProfessor[/url], a website that purports to allow students to rate their professors. Of course the website has virtually no control over who posts so anyone, whether a student or not, can go in and post on a particular professor. Even the professor in question can post if they would wish. If you want to post about a professor multiple times, go ahead, they won’t stop you.

The second criteria, also accounting for 25% of the rating, is how many of the college’s alumni (adjusted for enrolment), are listed in Who’s Who in America - published by none other than Forbes magazine.

The final 50% of the ranking is based equally on three factors including the average amount of student debt, the percentage of students graduating in four years, and number of students and faculty (adjusted for enrolment) who have won nationally-competitive awards like Rhodes Scholarships.

Forbes has taken a few important issues and combined them with the least reliable numbers they could find.

19.2 The Sly Logic Behind Forbes Crazy College Rankings - Vanity Fair – August, 2009

Two of the easiest ways for a publication to get attention are to (1) Make a list and (2) Make an outrageous, contrarian argument. Forbes employed both methods in its report on "America's Best Colleges," which it published last week.

Forbes had to work hard to differentiate themselves from the standard-setting U.S. News and World Report best colleges list, and to that effect, they came up with a thoroughly bizarre methodology.

The single most important factor in a college's placement (25 percent) is the average rating of its faculty on [ulr=https://www.ratemyprofessors.com/]RateMyProfessor.ocm[/url], where one of the four categories in which students grade their teachers is "easiness" (there's also a "hotness" category, but that doesn't count toward one's rating).

The second biggest component (20 percent) in the Forbes rankings is the average amount of debt each student incurs. While that is certainly something most prospective students consider, it's an entirely separate issue from the quality of the institution - a fact Forbes implicitly acknowledges. The third most important criterion in Forbes's methodology (16.67 percent) is the percentage of students who graduate in four years.

How can there be no consideration whatsoever given to student satisfaction or quality of life?

Forbes has since addresses this particular criticism – by including Niche’s numbers in Forbes’ Rankings Methodology

In August 2019, U.S. News, Niche, and The Princeton Review will publish their 2020 College Rankings.

In August 2019, Forbes will publish their 2019 College Rankings. Forbes’ College Rankings now lag a year behind their competitors, as Forbes requires Niche’s published 2019 College Rankings as an input to Forbes’ yet-to-be-published 2019 College Rankings.
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20. The Princeton Review Rankings

The Princeton Review Has Laid Off Many Employees. But Revenue Might Not Be Its Only Problem. - Eric Hoover, The Chronicle of Higher Education - August 19, 2018

A thorough search reveals that apparently, no one except the U.S. News has anything bad to say about The Princeton Review’s methodology:

Because U.S. News surveys schools directly, much of these data are not readily accessible anywhere else. We do not tour residence halls, chat with recruiters or conduct unscientific student polls for use in our computations.

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21. The Niche College Rankings

A thorough search reveals that apparently, no one except the U.S. News has anything bad to say about Niches’s rankings or methodology. The U.S. News explicitly criticizes the use of student surveys by other college ranking services, while strongly endorsing their own surveys of top academics, presidents, provosts, deans of admissions, and nearly 24,400 high school counsellors. All surveys produce subjective data, but the U.S. News falsely claims ”Hard objective data alone determine each school's rank.”
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22. Ranking the College Ranking Services

1. Niche (and it’s not even close)
2. The Princeton Review
3. Forbes
4. U.S. News

2020 Best Colleges in America - Niche Best Colleges

2020 Best Catholic Colleges in America - Niche Best Catholic Colleges
.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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2020 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY
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23. BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020

In August 2019, Niche published their on-line edition of Best Colleges in America 2020, which assigns a National Ranking to each of the 1,626 universities and colleges listed. Niche also publishes Category Rankings to categories too numerous to list. The most relevant category to Holy Land of Hoops is obviously Niche’s Best Catholic Colleges in America 2020, whose Catholic-school-only rankings have been added to the National Ranking listed below in red font.

For their 2020 edition, Niche researched over 2,000 universities and colleges, then chose the Top 1,626 Schools for inclusion in their on-line data base, school profile webpages, and National Rankings. Therefore, it follows that each 10% increment delineates 162.6 schools, each 5% increment delineates 81.3 schools, and each 2.5% increment delineates 41.6 schools.

The numbers shown above form the basis of Niche’s letter-grade rating assigned to each school:

THEORETICAL

Niche Grade …… Frequency …… Cumulative Frequency (College Ranking Range)

A+ … 5.0% …… Top 5.0% (colleges ranked #1 through #81)
A ……… 7.5% …… Top 10.0% (colleges ranked #82 through #163)
A- ……, 10.0% …… Top 20.0% (colleges ranked #163 through #325)
B+ …… 10.0% …… Top 30.0% (colleges ranked #326 through #488)
B ……… 20.0% …… Top 50.0% (colleges ranked #489 through #812)

ACTUAL

Niche Grade …… College Ranking Range …… Frequency …… Cumulative Frequency

A+ ……. Colleges ranked #1 through #98 …… 6.0% …… Top 6.0%
A ……… Colleges ranked #99 through #166 …… 4.2% …… Top 10.2%
A- …… Colleges ranked #167 through #297 …… 8.1% …… Top 18.3%
B+ …… Colleges ranked #298 through #473 …… 10.8% …… Top 29.1%
B …… Colleges ranked #474 through #812 …… 20.9% …… Top 50.0%

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 [Data mined on March 25, 2020]

2020 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,230 • SAT Range: 1490-1570
2. Stanford University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $16,562 • SAT Range: 1390-1540
3. Yale University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $18,053 • SAT Range: 1460-1580
4. Harvard University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $17,030 • SAT Range: 1460-1590
5. Princeton University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 6 % • Net Price: $16,302 • SAT Range: 1430-1570
6. Duke University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10 % • Net Price: $22,011 • SAT Range: 1380-1540
7. Brown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $25,651 • SAT Range: 1400-1570
8. Columbia University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,824 • SAT Range: 1410-1570
9. University of Pennsylvania • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $24,539 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
10. Rice University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16 % • Net Price: $24,131 • SAT Range: 1490-1580
11. Northwestern University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $26,099 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
12. Vanderbilt University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 11 % • Net Price: $23,292 • SAT Range: 1440-1560
13. Pomona College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $18,427 • SAT Range: 1370-1530
14. Washington University in St. Louis • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16 % • Net Price: $27,777 • SAT Range: 1470-1570
15. Dartmouth College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10% • Net Price: $22,303 • SAT Range: 1430-1560
16. Calif. Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $24,466 • SAT Range: 1530-1590
17. University of Notre Dame • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 19% • Net Price: $27,453 • SAT Range: 1370-1520 (#1 Catholic College)
18. University of Chicago • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $34,834 • SAT Range: 1480-1580
19. University of Southern California • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 17 % • Net Price: $32,892 • SAT Range: 1300-1500
20. Cornell University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $31,449 • SAT Range: 1390-1550
21. Bowdoin College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 14% • Net Price: $24,447 • SAT Range: 1360-1510
22. Amherst College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $19,519 • SAT Range: 1400-1560
23. University of Michigan • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 27% • Net Price: $16,408 • SAT Range: 1330-1500
24. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520 (#2 Catholic College)
48. Boston College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 32% • Net Price: $27,299 • SAT Range: 1320-1490 (#3 Catholic College)
81. Villanova University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 36% • Net Price: $35,491 • SAT Range: 1250-1440 (#4 Catholic College)

138. Saint Louis University • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $31,718 • SAT Range: 1170-1390 (#7 Catholic College)
150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 (#10 Catholic College)
160. University of Cincinnati • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 76% • Net Price: $21,050 • SAT Range: 1120-1340
163. University of Connecticut • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 48% • Net Price: $18,699 • SAT Range: 1210-1390

170. Miami University (OH) • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $20,316 • SAT Range: 1190-1380
176. University of Nebraska • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $16,813 • SAT Range: 1100-1380
180. Creighton University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $31,481 • SAT Range: 1070-1290 (#12 Catholic College)
185. Gonzaga University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $34,085 • SAT Range: 1180-1350 (#14 Catholic College)
190. Butler University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $38,051 • SAT Range: 1150-1320
206. Marquette University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $32,377 • SAT Range: 1130-1310 (#17 Catholic College)
212. Temple University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 57% • Net Price: $22,940 • SAT Range: 1010-1230
228. Drexel University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $40,977 • SAT Range: 1160-1360
233. Fordham University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 46% • Net Price: $38,503 • SAT Range: 1230-1410 (#20 Catholic College)
235. Providence College • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $36,099 • SAT Range: 1160-1330 (#21 Catholic College)
238. DePaul University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $32,927 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#22 Catholic College)
254. Duquesne University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $30,540 • SAT Range: 1120-1270 (#24 Catholic College)
280. Seton Hall University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $28,700 • SAT Range: 1140-1280 (#28 Catholic College)

301. St. Joseph’s University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 77% • Net Price: $35,290 • SAT Range: 1110-1290 (#32 Catholic College)
338. St. Bonaventure University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 71% • Net Price: $22,409 • SAT Range: 1020-1220 (#38 Catholic College)
376. Virginia Commonwealth U. • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 84% • Net Price: $20,741 • SAT Range: 1070-1260
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)

601. La Salle University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $26,276 • SAT Range: 870-1080 (#72 Catholic College)
639. St. John's University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $25,981 • SAT Range: 1060-1250 (#77 Catholic College)

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Link:

Stop with the postings about the academic reputations of the schools......you can find dozens and dozens of ranking services that can fit whatever narrative you are trying to promote.....for example, St. John's is a Vincentian University.....the entire mission of the school is "to provide excellent education for all people, especially those lacking economic, physical, or social advantages".......many students at SJU are first-generation college kids and many don't come from privileged backgrounds......

To me, a better measure of a University's success?......this....[/color][/b]

https://www.stjohns.edu/about/news/2018 ... ecognition

Vincentian University DePaul – Mission Statement - DePaul University
Vincentian University St. John’s – Mission Statement - St. John’s University

The Mission Statements look very similar to me, and both schools are located in big cities with total enrolments of over 20,000 students.

238. DePaul University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $32,927 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#22 Catholic College)
639. St. John's University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $25,981 • SAT Range: 1060-1250 (#77 Catholic College)

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2019 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY
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6. Schools of Interest (The following data was mined in Spring 2019 and has not been updatedsince.)

Table 6(a): Schools of Interest – Wikipedia - Sorted alphabetically
Table 6(b): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Founding Year
Table 6(c): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Enrolment
Table 6(d): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Endowment

For the purposes of this post, the following 32 institutions will be designated as ‘Schools of Interest’:

Table 6(a): Schools of Interest - Wikipedia

Institution • Founded • Type • Enrolment • Endowment

Brown University • 1764 • Private • 9,731 • $3.5 billion
Columbia University • 1754 • Private • 28,984 • $10.0 billion
Cornell University • 1865 • Private • 23,600 • $7.2 billion
Dartmouth College • 1769 • Private • 6,409 • $5.0 billion
Harvard University • 1636 • Private • 19,819 • $37.1 billion
University of Pennsylvania • 1740 • Private • 21,509 • $12.2 billion
Princeton University • 1746 • Private • 8,273 • $23.8 billion
Yale University • 1701 • Private • 12,312 • $27.8 billion

Mass. Institute of Technology • 1861 • Private • 11,574 • $16.4 billion
University of Chicago • 1890 • Private • 16,227 • $8.2 billion
Stanford University • 1891 • Private • 16,336 • $24.8 billion
University of Notre Dame • 1842 • Catholic (Holy Cross) • 12,292 • $13.1 billion

Butler University • 1855 • Private (Christian) • 4,848 • $0.174 billion
Creighton University • 1878 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 8,236 • $0.448 billion
DePaul University • 1898 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 23,799 • $0.596 billion
Georgetown University • 1789 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 17,858 • $1.770 billion
Marquette University • 1881 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 11,745 • $0.550 billion
Providence College • 1917 • Catholic (Dominican) • 4,533 • $0.213 billion
St. John's University • 1870 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 20,448 • $0.648 billion
Seton Hall University • 1856 • Catholic (Diocesan) • 9,627 • $0.243 billion
Villanova University • 1842 • Catholic (Augustinian) • 10,735 • $0.715 billion
Xavier University • 1831 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 6,538 • $0.151 billion

University of Dayton • 1850 • Catholic (Marianist) • 10,920 • $0.524 billion
Duquesne University • 1878 • Catholic (Spiritan) • 10,106 • $0.261 billion
Fordham University • 1841 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 14,667 • $0.739 billion
La Salle University • 1863 • Catholic (De La Salle) • 6,176 • $0.088 billion
St. Bonaventure University • 1858 • Catholic (Franciscan) • 2,406 • $0.060 billion
Saint Joseph's University • 1851 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,900 • $0.279 billion
Saint Louis University • 1818 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 16,500 • $1.230 billion

Gonzaga University • 1887 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,506 • $0.276 billion
University of Connecticut • 1881 • Public • 32,257 • $0.447 billion
Virginia Commonwealth U.* • 1968 • Public • 32,303 • $1.843 billion

* VCU was officially established in 1968 with the merger of the Richmond Professional Institute and Medical College of Virginia.
The history of VCU first began in 1838 when the Medical Department of Hampden-Sydney College first opened in Richmond.

Table 6(b): Schools of Interest - Sorted in Order of Founding Year

Founded • Institution • Type • Enrolment • Endowment

1636 • Harvard University • Private • 19,819 • $37.1 billion

1701 • Yale University • Private • 12,312 • $27.8 billion
1740 • University of Pennsylvania • Private • 21,509 • $12.2 billion
1746 • Princeton University • Private • 8,273 • $23.8 billion
1754 • Columbia University • Private • 28,984 • $10.0 billion
1764 • Brown University • Private • 9,731 • $3.5 billion
1769 • Dartmouth College • Private • 6,409 • $5.0 billion
1789 • Georgetown University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 17,858 • $1.770 billion

1818 • Saint Louis University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 16,500 • $1.230 billion
1831 • Xavier University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 6,538 • $0.151 billion
1841 • Fordham University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 14,667 • $0.739 billion
1842 • University of Notre Dame • Catholic (Holy Cross) • 12,292 • $13.1 billion
1842 • Villanova University • Catholic (Augustinian) • 10,735 • $0.715 billion
1850 • University of Dayton • Catholic (Marianist) • 10,920 • $0.524 billion

1851 • Saint Joseph's University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,900 • $0.279 billion
1855 • Butler University • Private (Christian) • 4,848 • $0.174 billion
1856 • Seton Hall University • Catholic (Diocesan) • 9,627 • $0.243 billion
1858 • St. Bonaventure University • Catholic (Franciscan) • 2,406 • $0.060 billion
1861 • Mass. Institute of Technology • Private • 11,574 • $16.4 billion
1863 • La Salle University • Catholic (De La Salle) • 6,176 • $0.088 billion
1865 • Cornell University • Private • 23,600 • $7.2 billion
1870 • St. John's University • Catholic (Vincentian) • 20,448 • $0.648 billion

1878 • Creighton University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 8,236 • $0.448 billion
1878 • Duquesne University • Catholic (Spiritan) • 10,106 • $0.261 billion
1881 • Marquette University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 11,745 • $0.550 billion
1881 • University of Connecticut • Public • 32,257 • $0.447 billion
1887 • Gonzaga University • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,506 • $0.276 billion
1890 • University of Chicago • Private • 16,227 • $8.2 billion
1891 • Stanford University • Private • 16,336 • $24.8 billion
1898 • DePaul University • Catholic (Vincentian) • 23,799 • $0.596 billion

1917 • Providence College • Catholic (Dominican) • 4,533 • $0.213 billion
1968 • Virginia Commonwealth U.* • Public • 32,303 • $1.843 billion
* VCU was officially established in 1968 with the merger of the Richmond Professional Institute and Medical College of Virginia.
The history of VCU first began in 1838 when the Medical Department of Hampden-Sydney College first opened in Richmond.

Table 6(c): Schools of Interest - Sorted in Order of Enrolment

Enrolment • Institution • Founded • Type • Endowment

32,303 • Virginia Commonwealth U. • 1968 • Public • $1.843 billion
32,257 • University of Connecticut • 1881 • Public • $0.447 billion

28,984 • Columbia University • 1754 • Private • $10.0 billion
23,799 • DePaul University • 1898 • Catholic (Vincentian) • $0.596 billion
23,600 • Cornell University • 1865 • Private • $7.2 billion
21,509 • University of Pennsylvania • 1740 • Private • $12.2 billion
20,448 • St. John's University • 1870 • Catholic (Vincentian) • $0.648 billion

19,819 • Harvard University • 1636 • Private • $37.1 billion
17,858 • Georgetown University • 1789 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $1.770 billion
16,500 • Saint Louis University • 1818 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $1.230 billion
16,336 • Stanford University • 1891 • Private • $24.8 billion
16,227 • University of Chicago • 1890 • Private • $8.2 billion

14,667 • Fordham University • 1841 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.739 billion
13,819 • AVERAGE ENROLMENT OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS
12,312 • Yale University • 1701 • Private • $27.8 billion
12,292 • University of Notre Dame • 1842 • Catholic (Holy Cross) • $13.1 billion
11,745 • Marquette University • 1881 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.550 billion
11,574 • Mass. Institute of Technology • 1861 • Private • $16.4 billion
10,920 • University of Dayton • 1850 • Catholic (Marianist) • $0.524 billion
10,735 • Villanova University • 1842 • Catholic (Augustinian) • $0.715 billion
10,106 • Duquesne University • 1878 • Catholic (Spiritan) • $0.261 billion

9,731 • Brown University • 1764 • Private • $3.5 billion
9,627 • Seton Hall University • 1856 • Catholic (Diocesan) • $0.243 billion
8,273 • Princeton University • 1746 • Private • $23.8 billion
8,236 • Creighton University • 1878 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.448 billion
7,900 • Saint Joseph's University • 1851 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.279 billion
7,506 • Gonzaga University • 1887 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.276 billion
6,538 • Xavier University • 1831 • Catholic (Jesuit) • $0.151 billion
6,409 • Dartmouth College • 1769 • Private • $5.0 billion
6,176 • La Salle University • 1863 • Catholic (De La Salle) • $0.088 billion

4,848 • Butler University • 1855 • Private (Christian) • $0.174 billion
4,533 • Providence College • 1917 • Catholic (Dominican) • $0.213 billion
2,406 • St. Bonaventure University • 1858 • Catholic (Franciscan) • $0.060 billion

Table 6(d): Schools of Interest - Sorted in Order of Endowment

Endowment • Institution • Founded • Type • Enrolment

$37.1 billion • Harvard University • 1636 • Private • 19,819
$27.8 billion • Yale University • 1701 • Private • 12,312
$24.8 billion • Stanford University • 1891 • Private • 16,336
$23.8 billion • Princeton University • 1746 • Private • 8,273

$16.4 billion • Mass. Institute of Technology • 1861 • Private • 11574
$13.1 billion • University of Notre Dame • 1842 • Catholic (Holy Cross) • 12,292
$12.2 billion • University of Pennsylvania • 1740 • Private • 21,509
$10.0 billion • Columbia University • 1754 • Private • 28,984

$8.2 billion • University of Chicago • 1890 • Private • 16,227
$7.2 billion • Cornell University • 1865 • Private • 23,600
$5.0 billion • Dartmouth College • 1769 • Private • 6,409
$3.5 billion • Brown University • 1764 • Private • 9,731
$1.84 billion • Virginia Commonwealth U. • 1968 • Public • 32,303
$1.77 billion • Georgetown University • 1789 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 17,858
$1.23 billion • Saint Louis University • 1818 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 16,500

$0.739 billion • Fordham University • 1841 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 14,667
$0.715 billion • Villanova University • 1842 • Catholic (Augustinian) • 10,735
$0.648 billion • St. John's University • 1870 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 20,448
$0.596 billion • DePaul University • 1898 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 23,799
$0.551 billion • AVERAGE ENDOWMENT OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS
$0.550 billion • Marquette University • 1881 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 11,745
$0.524 billion • University of Dayton • 1850 • Catholic (Marianist) • 10,920

$0.448 billion • Creighton University • 1878 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 8,236
$0.447 billion • University of Connecticut • 1881 • Public • 32,257
$0.279 billion • Saint Joseph's University • 1851 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,900
$0.276 billion • Gonzaga University • 1887 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 7,506
$0.261 billion • Duquesne University • 1878 • Catholic (Spiritan) • 10,106

$0.243 billion • Seton Hall University • 1856 • Catholic (Diocesan) • 9,627
$0.213 billion • Providence College • 1917 • Catholic (Dominican) • 4,533
$0.174 billion • Butler University • 1855 • Private (Christian) • 4,848
$0.151 billion • Xavier University • 1831 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 6,538
$0.088 billion • La Salle University • 1863 • Catholic (De La Salle) • 6,176
$0.060 billion • St. Bonaventure University • 1858 • Catholic (Franciscan) • 2,406

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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2019 AND 2020 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY
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7a. The U.S. News ‘Best Colleges 2019’ Rankings
7b. The U.S. News ‘Best Colleges 2020’ Rankings

8a. The Niche ‘Best Colleges in America 2019’ Rankings
8b. The Niche ‘Best Colleges in America 2020’ Rankings

9a. The Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2018’ Rankings
9b. The Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2019’ Rankings
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7. The U.S. News ‘Best Colleges 2019’ Rankings

==> See Section 18 in Post #1: 18. The Backlash Against the U.S. News College Rankings

Table 7(a): U.S. News Best Colleges 2019 - National University Rankings - USNews.com (Data no longer available.)

1. Princeton University • Tuition and Fees: $47,140
2. Harvard University • Tuition and Fees: $50,420
3(T). Columbia University • Tuition and Fees: $59,430
3(T). Mass. Institute of Technology • Tuition and Fees: $51,832
3(T). University of Chicago • Tuition and Fees: $57,006
3(T). Yale University • Tuition and Fees: $53,430
7. Stanford University • Tuition and Fees: $51,354
8(T). University of Pennsylvania • Tuition and Fees: $55,584
12(T). Dartmouth College • Tuition and Fees: $55,584
14(T). Brown University • Tuition and Fees: $55,656
16(T). Cornell University • Tuition and Fees: $55,188
18. University of Notre Dame • Tuition and Fees: $53,391
22(T). Georgetown University • Tuition and Fees: $54,105

Table 7(b): U.S. News Best Colleges 2020 - USNews.com (Data mined on March 25, 2020.)

1. Princeton University • Tuition and Fees: $51,870
2. Harvard University • Tuition and Fees: $51,925
3(T). Columbia University • Tuition and Fees: $61,850
3(T). Mass. Institute of Technology • Tuition and Fees: $53,790
3(T). Yale University • Tuition and Fees: $55,500
6(T). Stanford University • Tuition and Fees: $53,529
6(T). University of Chicago • Tuition and Fees: $59,298
6(T). University of Pennsylvania • Tuition and Fees: $57,770
9(T). Northwestern University • Tuition and Fees: $56,691
10(T). Duke University • Tuition and Fees: $58,198
12(T). Calif. Institute of Technology• Tuition and Fees: $54,600
12(T). Dartmouth College • Tuition and Fees: $57,204
14. Brown University • Tuition and Fees: $58,504
15(T). University of Notre Dame • Tuition and Fees: $55,553
24. Georgetown University • Tuition and Fees: $56,058

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8. The Niche ‘Best Colleges in America 2019’ Rankings

Table 8(a): Best Colleges in America 2019 - Niche (Data no longer available.)

2019 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,230 • SAT Range: 1490-1570
2. Stanford University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $16,562 • SAT Range: 1390-1540
3. Harvard University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $17,030 • SAT Range: 1460-1590
4. Yale University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $18,053 • SAT Range: 1460-1570
5. Princeton University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 6 % • Net Price: $16,302 • SAT Range: 1430-1570
6. University of Pennsylvania • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $24,539 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
7. Columbia University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,824 • SAT Range: 1410-1570
9. Brown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $25,651 • SAT Range: 1400-1570
13. University of Notre Dame • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 19% • Net Price: $27,453 • SAT Range: 1370-1520 (#1 Catholic College)
15. University of Chicago • Overall Niche Grade: [b]A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $34,834 • SAT Range: 1480-1580
19. Dartmouth College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10% • Net Price: $22,303 • SAT Range: 1430-1560
21. Cornell University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $31,449 • SAT Range: 1390-1550
22. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520 (#2 Catholic College)

Table 8(b): Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020.)

2020 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,230 • SAT Range: 1490-1570
2. Stanford University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $16,562 • SAT Range: 1390-1540
3. Yale University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $18,053 • SAT Range: 1460-1580
4. Harvard University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $17,030 • SAT Range: 1460-1590
5. Princeton University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 6 % • Net Price: $16,302 • SAT Range: 1430-1570
6. Duke University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10 % • Net Price: $22,011 • SAT Range: 1380-1540
7. Brown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $25,651 • SAT Range: 1400-1570
8. Columbia University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,824 • SAT Range: 1410-1570
11. Northwestern University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $26,099 • SAT Range: 1420-1560[/color]
15. Dartmouth College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10% • Net Price: $22,303 • SAT Range: 1430-1560
16. Calif. Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: [b]A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $24,466 • SAT Range: 1530-1590
17. University of Notre Dame • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 19% • Net Price: $27,453 • SAT Range: 1370-1520 (#1 Catholic College)
24. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520 (#2 Catholic College)

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9. The Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2018’ Rankings

==> See Section 19 in Post #1: 19. The Problems with the Forbes’ College Rankings

The final 50% of the Forbes Ranking is based equally on three factors including the average amount of student debt, the percentage of students graduating in four years, and number of students and faculty (adjusted for enrolment) who have won nationally-competitive awards like Rhodes Scholarships.

In August 2019, U.S. News, Niche, and The Princeton Review will publish their 2020 College Rankings.

In August 2019, Forbes will publish their 2019 College Rankings. Forbes’ College Rankings lag a year behind their competitors, because Forbes requires Niche’s published 2019 College Rankings as an input to Forbes’ yet-to-be-published 2019 College Rankings.

Table 9(a): Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2018’ - Forbes - August 21, 2018 (Data no longer available.)

2018 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

#1 Harvard University • Cost*: $69,600 • Average Financial Aid: $48,195
#2 Yale University • Cost: $71,290 • Average Financial Aid: $48,126
#3 Stanford University • Cost: $69,109 • Average Financial Aid: $47,782
#4 Mass. Institute of Technology • Cost: $67,430 • Average Financial Aid: $41,674
#5 Princeton University • Cost: $66,150 • Average Financial Aid: $44,128
#7 University of Pennsylvania • Cost: $71,715 • Average Financial Aid: $43,856
#8 Brown University • Cost: $71,050 • Average Financial Aid: $40,116
#9 Dartmouth College • Cost: $71,827 • Average Financial Aid: $45,867
#12 Georgetown University • Cost: $71,580 • Average Financial Aid: $40,346
#13 Cornell University • Cost: $70,321 • Average Financial Aid: $35,445
#15 Columbia University • Cost: $74,199 • Average Financial Aid: $46,127
#18 University of Chicago • Cost: $75,735 • Average Financial Aid: $39,032
#21 University of Notre Dame • Cost: $69,395 • Average Financial Aid: $38,080

* The Forbes Rankings uses the term “Cost” and defines it as “the estimated total cost of attendance for
out-of-state students living on campus in 2017-2018. This estimate includes the reported average cost of tuition and fees,
books and supplies, room and board, and ‘other’ living expenses. This figure is an estimate and not a guarantee of the
actual amount the student may be charged.”

Table 9(b): Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2019’ - Forbes - August 15, 2019 – 7:00 am (Data mined on March 25, 2020.)

2019 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

#1 Harvard University • Net Price: $14,327 • Average Debt: $7,372
#2 Stanford University • Net Price: $13,261 • Average Debt: $8,155
#3 Yale University • Net Price: $18,627 • Average Debt: $4,962
#4 Mass. Institute of Technology • Net Price: $20,771 • Average Debt: $7,530
#5 Princeton University • Net Price: $9,327 • Average Debt: $4,451
#6 University of Pennsylvania • Net Price: $24,242 • Average Debt: $7,733 ]
#7 Brown University • Net Price: $30,205 • Average Debt: $7,794
#8 Calif. Institute of Technology • Net Price: $24,245 • Average Debt: $5,988
#9 Duke University • Net Price: $35,737 • Average Debt: $6,114
#10 Dartmouth College • Net Price: $30,421 • Average Debt: $6,239
#11 Cornell University • Net Price: $31,230 • Average Debt: $8,107
#14 Columbia University • Net Price: $24,231 • Average Debt: $10,740 ]
#15 Georgetown University • Net Price: $30,107 • Average Debt: $6,358
#18 University of Notre Dame • Net Price: $28,768 • Average Debt: $6,600

Forbes Releases Annual Ranking of America's Top Colleges – Forbes Press Release - August 15, 2019 - 11:12am EDT

Methodology:

Now in its 12th year, the FORBES Top Colleges ranking has always placed its focus solely on the direct benefits a college or university provides its students.

Favoring output over input, Forbes eschews common metrics like acceptance rate, endowment, and freshmen SAT scores – numbers that say far more about a school’s “prestige” than its actual effectiveness – and instead favors variables like student debt, alumni salary, graduation rate and student satisfaction.

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Link:

Anyone using Niche to rank universities instantly loses credibility.

1. They factor in neighborhood safety and quality which instantly puts schools in large urban settings, particularly Jesuit schools which are usually in rougher neighborhoods, at a major disadvantage.

2. They factor in a ton of other useless metrics. Diversity? Loan amount? I went to a CPS HS then a suburban HS that was even more diverse than my CPS school, it's great for diverse thought but not correlated to great school or else cheaper directional schools would own the more expensive private schools. Loan amount? This is idiotic, it has zero to do with college quality.

Bottom line is Niche is a joke, in an attempt to go wayyyy overboard with analysis Fieldhouse Flyer has a tendency to not review data.

MUBoxer - It appears that everyone except Forbes agrees with your very valid assertion that Loan Amount is an idiotic criterion, because it has zero to do with college quality. However, Niche has never used Loan Amount as a criterion, and likely never will, because it is idiotic to do so.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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2019 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY THREAD
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The following Sections 16, 17, and 18 were written in the Spring of 2019, and have not been updated since.


16. Analysis: The Effect of U.S. News’ Six Subdivisions on the Rankings of Big East Schools

16.1 Issue: The U.S. News divides the data population (i.e., schools) into six different categories. What is the effect of this on the rankings of Big East schools?

16.2 Question: What is the effect of U.S. News’ six subdivisions on the rankings of Georgetown ?

…… None. Georgetown is ranked # 22 by Niche, and is ranked # 22 in the US News ‘National Universities’ category.

16.3 Question: What is the effect of U.S. News’ six subdivisions on the rankings of Villanova ?

…… Huge. The effect comes into play in the rankings interval between Georgetown and Villanova, as can be seen in Table 16(a) below:

Table 16(a): Rankings for Villanova University

Niche 2019 Rankings: 98. Villanova University: Top 11 % of 880 schools ranked by Niche (#98/880 schools)
Forbes 2018 Rankings: 70. Villanova University: Top 11 % of 650 schools ranked by Forbes (#70/650 schools)
U.S. News 2019 Rankings: 49(T). Villanova University: Top 22% of 226 National Universities ranked by US News (49/226)

While it can be seen that Villanova receives their ‘best’ ranking from U.S. News (49(T).), it can also be seen that the reason why Villanova receives their ‘best’ ranking from U.S. News is that dozens of schools which are ranked ‘better’ than Villanova in the Niche and Forbes rankings are not included in the US News ’National Universities’ rankings because they are listed in the U.S. News ‘National Liberal Arts Colleges 2019’ category instead.

Table 16(b): The US News ‘National Liberal Arts Colleges’ Category (233 Schools Listed)

US News ‘National Liberal Arts Colleges 2019’ Ranking • Niche Ranking • School

1 • 42 •Williams College
2 • 24 • Amherst College
3(T) • 30 • Swarthmore College
3(T) • 39 • Wellesley College
5(T) • 17 • Bowdoin College
5(T) • 35 • Carleton College
5(T) • 16 • Pomona College
5(T) • 32 • Middlebury College
9 • 41 • Claremont McKenna College
10 • 54 • Davidson College
11(T) • 68 • Grinnell College
11(T) • 40 • Haverford College
11(T) • 56 • Smith College
11(T) • 72 • Vassar College
11(T) • 36 • Washington and Lee University
16 (T) • 55 • Colgate University
16 (T) • 53 • Hamilton College … etc. … etc. …

… and that’s why Villanova appears to be ranked much better by US News than by Niche. Ditto for many hundreds of other schools.

16.5 Question: What is the effect of U.S. News’ six subdivisions on the rankings of Marquette, DePaul, Seton Hall, and St. John’s ?

…… To answer this question, please note that the effect illustrated in Table 16(b) above becomes considerably more pronounced by the time that the Niche rankings hit the # 200 marker. In addition to this, another completely separate effect is in play, illustrated in Tables 16(c), 16(d) and 16(e) with Five Public Schools in P5 Conferences added for context.

Table 16(c): Best Colleges in America 2019 - Niche

22. Georgetown University
98. Villanova University

212. Creighton University
214. DePaul University
219. Marquette University
225. Providence College
227. Butler University
236. • AVERAGE RANKING OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS
241. Oregon State University • PAC 12 • Enrolment: 31,904
247. University of Tennessee • SEC • Enrolment: 27,410
272. West Virginia University • Big 12 • Enrolment: 31,287
274. University of Kentucky • SEC • Enrolment: 30,720
296. University of Louisville • ACC • Enrolment: 22,640
302. Seton Hall University
331. Xavier University
508. St. John's University • Big East • Enrolment: 20,448

Table 16(d): Forbes ‘America’s Top Colleges 2018’ - Forbes

#12 Georgetown University
#70 Villanova University
#162 Providence College
#175 Marquette University
#208 • AVERAGE RANKING OF 10 BIG EAST SCHOOLS
#222 Creighton University
#224 University of Tennessee • SEC • Enrolment: 27,410
#237 Butler University
#243 DePaul University
#265 Oregon State University • PAC 12 • Enrolment: 31,904
#272 Xavier University
#287 Seton Hall University
#323 University of Kentucky • SEC • Enrolment: 30,720
#402 St. John's University • Big East • Enrolment: 20,448
#406 West Virginia University • Big 12 • Enrolment: 31,287
#429 University of Louisville • ACC • Enrolment: 22,640

Table 16(e): U.S. News Best Colleges 2019 - National University Rankings - USNews.com

22(T). Georgetown University
49(T). Villanova University
89(T). Marquette University
92 • AVERAGE RANKING OF 6 BIG EAST SCHOOLS
115(T). University of Tennessee • SEC • Enrolment: 27,410
119(T). DePaul University
119(T). Seton Hall University
140(T). Oregon State University • PAC 12 • Enrolment: 31,904
147(T). University of Kentucky • SEC • Enrolment: 30,720
152(T). St. John’s University • Big East • Enrolment: 20,448
171(T). University of Louisville • ACC • Enrolment: 22,640
205(T). West Virginia University • Big 12 • Enrolment: 31,287

16.6 Question: What is the effect of U.S. News’ six subdivisions on the rankings of Providence, Butler, Creighton, and Xavier ?

…… US News relegates Providence, Butler, Creighton, and Xavier to the minor leagues to improve the ranking numbers for the much bigger public schools.

Table 16(f): U.S. News - Best Regional Universities 2019

U.S. News - Best Regional Universities 2019 - North Rankings (196 schools listed)

2. Providence College

U.S. News - Best Regional Universities 2019 - Midwest Rankings (172 schools listed)

1(T). Butler University
1(T). Creighton University*
8. Xavier University

* On April 30, 2019, it was announced that US News has reclassified Creighton University as a ‘National University’

16.7 Confessions from the Data:

16.7(a): Tables 16(a) through 16(f) above show that the effect of US News’ six subdivisions is to give much better ranking numbers to the large Public Schools in P5 Conferences, which typically have large enrolments (and therefore, large numbers of applications from high school students each year) and large alumni bases.

16.7(b): The U.S. News and World Report was a successful weekly news magazine when they launched their first edition of college rankings in 1983. As the U.S. News and World Report is a business, it can safely be assumed that a business decision was made to invest the money required to produce their first edition of their college rankings.

16.7(c): A business decision necessitates a business strategy, and it is apparent that the business strategy of U.S. News and World Report was twofold:

…… (1) Maximize the ‘credibility’ of their rankings by stuffing the top of the chart with Ivy League schools (who would presumably then endorse the credibility of the U.S. News Rankings), and

…… (2) Maximize revenue by ranking Large Public Schools in P5 Conferences much better than they would be if all of the schools they ranked were in the same dataset. Large enrolments and large alumni bases = lots of customers for the U.S. News Rankings. This decision was essential for their business model, which required the college rankings to produce more additional revenue than the cost of producing the rankings.

16.7(d): The University of Tennessee is a good example of Confession 16.7(c) above:

Table 16(g): Rankings for the University of Tennessee

Niche 2019 Rankings: 247. University of Tennessee: (Top 28 % of 880 schools ranked by Niche (#247/880 schools)
Forbes 2018 Rankings: #224 University of Tennessee: (Top 34 % of 650 schools ranked by Forbes (#224/650 schools)
U.S. News 2019 Rankings: 115(T). University of Tennessee*: (Top 51% of 226 National Universities ranked by US News (#115/226)

* University of Tennessee • SEC • Enrolment: 27,410 • Endowment: $ 1,100,000,000

Confession 19.7(e): Therefore, the US News found that they could rank the University of Tennessee more than 100 places higher by removing 889 schools (74%) from their data population of 1201 schools, labelling them as ‘National Liberal Arts Colleges’ or ‘Regional Universities’, and ranking those 889 schools separately in five different categories – which is exactly what the US News did.

Make no mistake about it - this was a business decision made by the U.S. News & World Report magazine back in 1983. As the first entrant into the College Ratings Services market, the U.S. News & World Report was quite aware that they had no competition in the market they created. The U.S. News & World Report was also quite aware that they would sell a lot more copies of their magazine in Knoxville if the Volunteers were ranked in the Top 115 instead of the Top 230, which would have been the case if US News ranked all 1201 schools in a single dataset. While I have selected the University of Tennessee for the preceding example, the same principle/effect applies to ALL Large Public Universities, and there are a lot of them:

The 10 Largest U.S. Public Universities by Total Enrollment 2009-2018 – Wikipedia

The 50 Largest U.S. Colleges and Universities by Total Enrollment 2017-2018 - CollegeXpress.com – 2019

It is not a coincidence that none of the 889 schools removed from the U.S. News National Universities category were Large Public Universities[/b].

U.S. News’ Change in Methodology Drops CWRU Undergraduate Ranking to 42nd- Case Western Reserve University News – September 10, 2018

A significant change to U.S. News & World Report’s methodology has sent the ranking of Case Western Reserve [enrolment: 11,824] below 40 for the first time in eight years. The magazine’s methodology adjustments made a major impact on several other institutions. For example, Lehigh University [enrolment: 6,989] fell eight (from 45th to 53rd), while Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute[enrolment: 7,962] fell seven places (to 49).

Conversely, several public institutions climbed in the rankings. Rutgers University-New Brunswick [enrolment: 49,577] leapt 13 spots (to 56th). The University of California-Irvine [enrolment: 29,307] went up nine (to 33); the University of Georgia [enrolment: 37,606] and UC-Davis [enrolment: 39,152] climbed eight (to 46th and 38th, respectively); and the University of Florida [enrolment: 54,906] and University of Texas-Austin [enrolment: 51,832] both rose seven slots (35th and 49th, respectively).

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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2019 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY
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The 2019 Princeton Reviews of their chosen ‘Best 384 Colleges’ are as good or better than those provided by Niche, and certainly much better than those produced by US News and Forbes. They really are worth a look for those of you who are unfamiliar with them. The Princeton Review does not provide an overall ranking for each college, because doing so would be contrary to the way that the good folks at Princeton Review believe students should select the college that suits them best.

What do you want from your 4-year college experience? - If you haven’t honestly answered this question for yourself, you probably should before you begin looking for a college. There are as many answers to this question as there are high school students searching for the college that fits them best.

Which criteria are more important than others to you? – If you don’t know that, it’s best to decide these things before starting to search for the college that most-closely fits what you want.

This is the philosophy that the Princeton Reviews employed in the creation of their college reviews and rankings for the numerous categories on their website. Decide what you want in college for your four undergraduate years, then look at the colleges which best fit your own personal criteria. That’s what the Princeton Reviews are all about. The Princeton Review is frequently slated for their often-quoted ranking for Best Party Schools image, but the Princeton Reviews are much, much more than that.

In short, the target audience for the Princeton Reviews and Niche Reviews is high school students who want to make the best choice possible for them.

On the other hand, the target audience for US News and Forbes are the Universities themselves, their senior administrators, their alumni, academia, and Wall Street, with high school students being only the fodder to produce on-going revenue streams for the foreseeable future.

The following Section 11 was written in the Spring of 2019. I have not updated the rankings shown below in the 2019 edition of Princeton Review, which are likely to have changed to a limited extent in the present 2020 edition. The purpose of this post is not to emphasize the actual rankings, but rather, to introduce the Princeton Review to those of you who are not familiar with it, and have an interest in College Rating Services.
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11. Princeton Review ‘Best 384 Colleges 2019 Edition’

Concerning the listing of categories of Top 20 rankings shown in Table 11(a), note that each category which contains any of the 32 Schools of Interest listed in Table 6(a) is provided with a working link to that category, followed by the School of Interest and its ranking number in the Top 20. Categories which are not linked do not contain any of the 32 Schools of Interest.

Table 11(a): The Princeton Review 2019 homepage – 62 Lists - The Princeton Review

Academics & Administration – 18 lists
• Administrators Get Low Marks
• Best Career Services
• Best Classroom Experience
• Best College Library ==> #1 Columbia University, #4 University of Chicago, #5 Stanford University, #7 Cornell University
• Best Health Services ==> #8 Stanford University
• Best Science Lab Facilities ==> #4 Stanford University, #10 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Best-Run Colleges ==> #4 Stanford University, #10 University of Dayton
• Financial Aid Not So Great ==> #4 Duquesne University
• Great Financial Aid ==> #6 Princeton University, #7 Yale University, #13 Stanford University, #17 Brown University, #20 Cornell University
• Least Accessible Professors
• Most Accessible Professors
• Most Popular Study Abroad Program ==> #18 Saint Louis University
• Professors Get High Marks ==> #18 Brown University
• Professors Get Low Marks ==> #4 University of Connecticut, #9 St. John's University (NY)
• Students Study the Least ==> #7 St. John's University (NY), #16 St. Bonaventure University
• Students Study the Most ==> #11 University of Chicago, #16 Brown University
• Their Students Love These Colleges ==> #7 Brown University, #8 University of Dayton
• This is a Library? ==> #5 Creighton University, #14 St. John's University (NY), #20 Providence College

Demographics – 6 lists
• Least Religious Students ==> #10 Brown University
• LGBTQ-Friendly ==> #3 Brown University (Providence, R.I.)
• LGBTQ-Unfriendly ==> #10 Providence College (Providence, R.I.)
• Little Race/Class Interaction ==> #1 Providence College
• Lots of Race/Class Interaction ==> #14 St. Bonaventure University
• Most Religious Students ==> None of the 32 Schools of Interest appear on this Top 20 list.

Extracurriculars – 10 lists
• Best Athletic Facilities ==> #14 Providence College, #20 Stanford University
• Best College Newspaper ==> #1 Columbia University , #4 Cornell University, #11 Fordham University, #19 Brown University
• Best College Radio Station ==> #3 St. Bonaventure University, #13 Fordham University, #14 Providence College, #18 Columbia University
• Best College Theater ==> #18 Brown University, #19 Columbia University
• Students Most Engaged in Community Service ==> #1 Saint Louis University, #15 Creighton University
• Everyone Plays Intramural Sports ==> #1 University of Dayton, #10 Providence College, #11 Saint Joseph's University (PA)
• Nobody Plays Intramural Sports
• Students Pack the Stadiums ==> #3 Xavier Univ., #7 Marquette Univ., #8 Univ. of Connecticut, #9 Providence College, #16 St. John's Univ. (NY)
• There’s a Game?
• Most Active Student Government

Politics – 4 lists
• Election? What Election? ==> #17 Duquesne University
• Most Conservative Students
• Most Liberal Students ==> #17 Brown University
• Most Politically Active Students ==> #6 Columbia University, #13 Brown University

Quality of Life – 9 lists
• Best Campus Food ==> #4 Cornell University
• Best College Dorms ==> #11 Columbia University, #18 University of Dayton
• Best Quality of Life
• Happiest Students ==> #10 Brown University, #12 University of Dayton
• Is It Food? ==> #6 Providence College, #9 Creighton University, #16 Butler University, #17 Saint Joseph's University (PA)
• Is That a Dorm? ==> #13 Providence College, #14 Creighton University, #17 Duquesne University
• Least Beautiful Campus
• Least Happy Students ==> #7 Seton Hall University, #9 St. John's University (NY)
• Most Beautiful Campus

Schools by Type – 4 lists
• Birkenstock-Wearing, Tree-Hugging, Clove-Smoking Vegetarians ==> #10 Brown University
• Future Rotarians and Daughters of the American Revolution ==> #11 Butler University, #18 Saint Joseph's University (PA)
• Party Schools ==> #13 Providence College
• Stone-Cold Sober Schools

Social Scene – 7 lists
• Don't Inhale
• Got Milk? (a.k.a. ‘Absence of Beer’ ranking) ==> #1 Brigham Young University, #18 St. John's University (NY)
• Lots of Beer ==> #2 University of Dayton, #12 Providence College
• Lots of Greek Life ==> #15 Butler University, #20 Providence College
• Lots of Hard Liquor ==> #20 Providence College
• Reefer Madness
• Scotch and Soda, Hold the Scotch

Town Life – 4 lists
• College City Gets High Marks ==> #2 Columbia University (Manhattan), #17 Duquesne University (Pittsburgh)
• College College City Gets Low Marks ==> #10 Butler University (Indianapolis)
• Town-Gown Relations are Great
• Town-Gown Relations are Strained ==> #13 Providence College (Providence), #15 Marquette University (Milwaukee)

Note that The Princeton Review had to fill 1240 boxes in order to complete their lists above: (62 lists)x(20 schools/list) = 1220 boxes.

Table 11(b): ’Schools of Interest’ Not Appearing on Any of The Princeton Review’s 62 Lists

Dartmouth College, Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Notre Dame, DePaul University, Georgetown University, Villanova University. ==> [Not listed in Princeton's Best 384 Colleges: La Salle University and Virginia Commonwealth University]

Table 11(c): The Princeton Review’s Best 384 Colleges - The Princeton Review, August 2018

Brown University
Columbia University
Cornell University
Dartmouth College
Harvard University
University of Pennsylvania
Princeton University
Yale University

Mass. Institute of Technology
University of Chicago
Stanford University
University of Notre Dame

Butler University
Creighton University
DePaul University
Georgetown University
Marquette University
Providence College
St. John's University
Seton Hall University
Villanova University
Xavier University

University of Dayton
Duquesne University
Fordham University
St. Bonaventure University
Saint Joseph's University
Saint Louis University

Gonzaga University
University of Connecticut

'School of Interest' not listed in The Princeton Review’s Best 384 Colleges: La Salle University and Virginia Commonwealth University.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

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2019 AND 2019 COLLEGE RANKINGS AND METHODOLOGY
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Concluding Remarks:

1983 • U.S. News & World Report publishes its first "America's Best Colleges" report in its news magazine. The rankings have been compiled and published annually since 1987.

23. Ranking the College Ranking Services

1. Niche (and it’s not even close)
2. The Princeton Review
3. Forbes
4. U.S. News

In 1983, I bought the first edition of U.S. News & World Report’s "America's Best Colleges", and it is probably still somewhere in my attic. I was years out of college by then, but I bought primarily to see the methodology employed to produce those rankings, as it appeared to me to be an extremely complex endeavour that could not be completed objectively. As things turned out, I was right back in 1983, and by the time that the Princeton Review published their first Review in 1992, they reached the same conclusion and decided not to assign a National Ranking to any of the colleges they reviewed. I applauded that decision – then and now - for the many reasons stated above in this thread.

If none of the Big Four rankings services provided National Rankings, I would consider it to be a coin flip between Niche and the Princeton Review for first place, as these two sources provide the largest quantity of objective information about the colleges, and in very useful formats for the end-users, with many useful features.

But rankings are rankings, and people like to see things ranked, so Niche wins first place because Niche’s methodology is clearly superior to the methodologies used by US News and Forbes.

Forbes easily takes third place, despite their rankings being based on irrelevant criteria (such as Loan Amount), but at least Forbes is honest.

US News easily takes last place, because they are deliberately manipulated to achieve the desired outcome, and therefore, have no value whatsoever.

Consider this: every year since their inception in 1983, US News has changed either their criteria, or weighting factors, or both. Doing so invalidates comparisons between different years of US News’ rankings, because doing so is comparing apples with oranges. Niche maintains the same methodology and weighting factors year after year, so comparisons between different years of Niche’s rankings are quite valid.

Those of you who have high-level experience in awarding $500,000,000 contracts know that if the methodology for awarding the contract is not published in the ‘Invitation for Tenders’, the contract can be given to the company of choice, simply by manipulating the contract award criteria to achieve the desired results. This is best explained by example.

Contract Tender Score = (WF1)*(Criterion1) + (WF2)*(Criterion2) + (WF3)*(Criterion3) (WF4)*(Criterion4) + (WF5)*(Criterion5) + etc.+ etc. …

… where each Weighting Factor is a decimal between 0.01 and 0.99.

How U.S. News Calculated the 2020 Best Colleges Rankings - Robert Morse, Eric Brooks, and Matt Mason, US News - September 8, 2019

How the Methodology Works

Although our methodology is the product of years of research, we continue to refine our approach based on user feedback, discussions with schools and higher education experts, literature reviews, trends in our own data, availability of new data, and attending and sometimes presenting at professional conferences.

“we continue to refine our approach” – translation: “we change our methodology every single year without broadcasting that fact to people who have not yet noticed.” Caveat emptor!
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Those of you who are experienced in the Monte Carlo method are already aware that it can easily be used to ‘rig the bid’, which is what US News has done every year since 1983.

US News always uses 10 criteria (which frequently change) so here is what US News does:

1. Decide which order to rank the Top 10 schools.

2. Start out with 15 candidate criteria, but use only 10 criteria at a time in each Monte Carlo simulation, assigning trial weighting factors WF1 to WF10 to each of the criterion.

3. Run simulations, each time changing WF1 through WF10 as necessary so that the Computed Ranking Order converges on the Desired Ranking Order.

4. When the ‘best fit’ for Criterion 1 through 10 is obtained, that becomes Trial Result No. 1.

5. Start again, this time substituting Criterion #11 for Criterion #10. Repeat as above. Trial Result No. 2.

6. Start again, this time substituting Criterion #12 for Criterion #11. Repeat as above. Trial Result No. 3.

7. [Four days later …] Start again, this time substituting Criterion #14 for Criterion # 6. Repeat as above. Trial Result No. 13,278.

8. Keep doing the same thing ad nauseam

9. After a few hundred thousand runs, you will have the “right 10 criteria” and “right 10 weighting factors” to produce a quantitatively-generated, objectively-obtained Ranking of Colleges that identically matches the subjective ranking you decided upon in Step 1 above.

10. Choose the criteria and weighting factors obtained in Step 9 above, apply them to all 1,500 schools in your data base, and there you have it – the US News’ America's Best Colleges.

It’s that simple.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

Post #7
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The Case Method and Niche’s Net Price
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NCAA Cancels Men's and Women's Basketball Championships - NCAA.com - March 12, 2020

Colleges and universities across the US are canceling in-person classes due to coronavirus – CNN - March 12, 2020

School’s Out – Alice Cooper – April 26, 1972

The Harvard Business Review Case Method - Wikipedia • Case Studies – Harvard Business Review Store (563 pages)

Learning by the Case Method – John S. Hammond, Harvard Business School – Revised April 16, 2002

Why Harvard’s case studies are under fire - Andrew Jack, The Financial Times (London) - October 29, 2018
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Good morning class. I hope that you are all well. Let’s get started without delay, as so far, we are unable to ascertain the size of the big truck coming down the road at us. Hopefully, an effective vaccine will soon be available and life will get back to normal. But until then, there is no good reason to let your brains calcify, so please read on.

The first six posts on this thread have provided me with the opportunity to present and utilize The Harvard Business Review Case Method, which served me well for more than 40 years, both as a practitioner and as a guest lecturer at an East coast post-graduate business school. But first, we’ll have a look at Data before moving on to the case studies.

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Lesson 1 • Data
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Younger HLOH readers who have not yet had the opportunity to make major business decisions which could affect the future profitability (or even viability) of a company (or division of a company) should always make point of looking at any given dataset from as many different angles as possible, such as I did with Table 6 above:

Table 6(a): Schools of Interest – Wikipedia - Sorted alphabetically
Table 6(b): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Founding Year
Table 6(c): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Enrolment
Table 6(d): Schools of Interest - Sorted in order of Endowment

The primary benefit (or necessity) of doing so is that it opens up ‘leads’ to possible analyses which could be undertaken to produce useful information for business decision. It is imperative that this is done as a matter of standard procedure for three reasons:

(1) If your business decision subsequently turns out to be the wrong one, and your superiors discover that you had not undertaken due diligence in your analyses prior to making the business decision, you are out the door. To the superiors of an employee at this level, ‘due diligence’ would include looking at any given dataset from as many different angles as reasonably possible.

(2) It is wise to assume that your competitors are always looking at a given dataset from as many different angles as possible, so why would you want to deliberately put yourself at a disadvantage to competitors facing the same or similar decision?

(3) It is the most cost-effective way of spotting anomalies. Anomalies and outliers in a dataset can arise for many different reasons. While some are benign, others can be a sign of a yet-undiscovered problem that requires further investigation. The tricky thing about anomalies is that you don’t know about them until you spot them, and when you look at a given dataset from as many different angles as possible, it maximizes your opportunities of spotting potentially undiagnosed anomalies.

With that nugget of wisdom firmly planted, please allow me to re-present Table 23. NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 as Tables 23(a) and 23(b) in order to extract additional visual information about the original Table 23:

Table 23(a): NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 – SORTED BY NET PRICE

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

2020 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

228. Drexel University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $40,977 • SAT Range: 1160-1360

233. Fordham University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 46% • Net Price: $38,503 • SAT Range: 1230-1410 (#20 Catholic College)
190. Butler University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $38,051 • SAT Range: 1150-1320
235. Providence College • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $36,099 • SAT Range: 1160-1330 (#21 Catholic College)
81. Villanova University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 36% • Net Price: $35,491 • SAT Range: 1250-1440 (#4 Catholic College)
301. St. Joseph’s University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 77% • Net Price: $35,290 • SAT Range: 1110-1290 (#32 Catholic College)
150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 (#10 Catholic College)

18. University of Chicago • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $34,834 • SAT Range: 1480-1580
185. Gonzaga University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $34,085 • SAT Range: 1180-1350 (#14 Catholic College)
238. DePaul University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $32,927 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#22 Catholic College)
19. University of Southern California • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 17 % • Net Price: $32,892 • SAT Range: 1300-1500
206. Marquette University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $32,377 • SAT Range: 1130-1310 (#17 Catholic College)
138. Saint Louis University • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $31,718 • SAT Range: 1170-1390 (#7 Catholic College)
180. Creighton University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $31,481 • SAT Range: 1070-1290 (#12 Catholic College)
20. Cornell University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $31,449 • SAT Range: 1390-1550
254. Duquesne University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $30,540 • SAT Range: 1120-1270 (#24 Catholic College)
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)

280. Seton Hall University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $28,700 • SAT Range: 1140-1280 (#28 Catholic College)
14. Washington University in St. Louis • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16 % • Net Price: $27,777 • SAT Range: 1470-1570
17. University of Notre Dame • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 19% • Net Price: $27,453 • SAT Range: 1370-1520 (#1 Catholic College)
24. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520 (#2 Catholic College)
48. Boston College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 32% • Net Price: $27,299 • SAT Range: 1320-1490 (#3 Catholic College)
601. La Salle University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $26,276 • SAT Range: 870-1080 (#72 Catholic College)
11. Northwestern University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $26,099 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
639. St. John's University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $25,981 • SAT Range: 1060-1250 (#77 Catholic College)
7. Brown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $25,651 • SAT Range: 1400-1570

9. University of Pennsylvania • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $24,539 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
16. Calif. Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $24,466 • SAT Range: 1530-1590
21. Bowdoin College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 14% • Net Price: $24,447 • SAT Range: 1360-1510
10. Rice University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16 % • Net Price: $24,131 • SAT Range: 1490-1580
12. Vanderbilt University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 11 % • Net Price: $23,292 • SAT Range: 1440-1560
212. Temple University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 57% • Net Price: $22,940 • SAT Range: 1010-1230
8. Columbia University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,824 • SAT Range: 1410-1570
338. St. Bonaventure University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 71% • Net Price: $22,409 • SAT Range: 1020-1220 (#38 Catholic College)
15. Dartmouth College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10% • Net Price: $22,303 • SAT Range: 1430-1560
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,230 • SAT Range: 1490-1570
6. Duke University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10 % • Net Price: $22,011 • SAT Range: 1380-1540
160. University of Cincinnati • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 76% • Net Price: $21,050 • SAT Range: 1120-1340
170. Miami University (OH) • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $20,316 • SAT Range: 1190-1380

22. Amherst College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $19,519 • SAT Range: 1400-1560
163. University of Connecticut • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 48% • Net Price: $18,699 • SAT Range: 1210-1390
13. Pomona College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $18,427 • SAT Range: 1370-1530
3. Yale University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $18,053 • SAT Range: 1460-1580
4. Harvard University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $17,030 • SAT Range: 1460-1590
176. University of Nebraska • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $16,813 • SAT Range: 1100-1380
2. Stanford University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $16,562 • SAT Range: 1390-1540
23. University of Michigan • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 27% • Net Price: $16,408 • SAT Range: 1330-1500
5. Princeton University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 6 % • Net Price: $16,302 • SAT Range: 1430-1570

In Tables 23(a) and 23(b), please note that I deliberately excluded all Big 10 schools except Michigan and Northwestern (high academic ranking) and Nebraska (proximity to Creighton), because previously published studies suggest that most high school students who choose a Catholic university have other Catholic universities among their top preferences (rather than a big land-grant football school receiving hundreds of $millions in federal research grants).
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Table 23(b): NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 – SELECTED GEOGRAPHIC GROUPINGS - SORTED BY NET PRICE


Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

2020 RANKING – BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

235. Providence College • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $36,099 • SAT Range: 1160-1330 (#21 Catholic College)
48. Boston College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 32% • Net Price: $27,299 • SAT Range: 1320-1490 (#3 Catholic College)
7. Brown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $25,651 • SAT Range: 1400-1570
21. Bowdoin College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 14% • Net Price: $24,447 • SAT Range: 1360-1510
15. Dartmouth College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 10% • Net Price: $22,303 • SAT Range: 1430-1560
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,230 • SAT Range: 1490-1570
22. Amherst College • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $19,519 • SAT Range: 1400-1560
163. University of Connecticut • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 48% • Net Price: $18,699 • SAT Range: 1210-1390
3. Yale University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $18,053 • SAT Range: 1460-1580
4. Harvard University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 5 % • Net Price: $17,030 • SAT Range: 1460-1590

233. Fordham University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 46% • Net Price: $38,503 • SAT Range: 1230-1410 (#20 Catholic College)
20. Cornell University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 13% • Net Price: $31,449 • SAT Range: 1390-1550
280. Seton Hall University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $28,700 • SAT Range: 1140-1280 (#28 Catholic College)
639. St. John's University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $25,981 • SAT Range: 1060-1250 (#77 Catholic College)
8. Columbia University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 7 % • Net Price: $22,824 • SAT Range: 1410-1570

5. Princeton University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 6 % • Net Price: $16,302 • SAT Range: 1430-1570

228. Drexel University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $40,977 • SAT Range: 1160-1360
81. Villanova University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 36% • Net Price: $35,491 • SAT Range: 1250-1440 (#4 Catholic College)
301. St. Joseph’s University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 77% • Net Price: $35,290 • SAT Range: 1110-1290 (#32 Catholic College)
601. La Salle University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $26,276 • SAT Range: 870-1080 (#72 Catholic College)
9. University of Pennsylvania • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $24,539 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
212. Temple University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 57% • Net Price: $22,940 • SAT Range: 1010-1230

24. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520(#2 Catholic College)

190. Butler University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $38,051 • SAT Range: 1150-1320
150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 (#10 Catholic College)
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)
160. University of Cincinnati • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 76% • Net Price: $21,050 • SAT Range: 1120-1340
170. Miami University (OH) • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $20,316 • SAT Range: 1190-1380

18. University of Chicago • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 8 % • Net Price: $34,834 • SAT Range: 1480-1580
238. DePaul University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $32,927 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#22 Catholic College)
206. Marquette University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $32,377 • SAT Range: 1130-1310 (#17 Catholic College)
17. University of Notre Dame • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 19% • Net Price: $27,453 • SAT Range: 1370-1520 (#1 Catholic College)
11. Northwestern University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 9 % • Net Price: $26,099 • SAT Range: 1420-1560
23. University of Michigan • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 27% • Net Price: $16,408 • SAT Range: 1330-1500

138. Saint Louis University • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $31,718 • SAT Range: 1170-1390 (#7 Catholic College)
14. Washington University in St. Louis • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16 % • Net Price: $27,777 • SAT Range: 1470-1570

176. University of Nebraska • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 64% • Net Price: $16,813 • SAT Range: 1100-1380
180. Creighton University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $31,481 • SAT Range: 1070-1290 (#12 Catholic College)

A quick review of Tables 23(a) and 23(b) reveals many interesting facts about the dataset that were far less obvious in the original Table 23 (in which the schools were sorted in order of their Niche 2020 ranking). My apologies to those of you who may disagree with my geographic groupings. I know geography quite well, and was not entirely comfortable grouping Bowdoin College with Yale and UConn, nor with sneaking Milwaukee, Ann Arbor, and South Bend into the Chicago suburbs, but I won’t lose any sleep over it. As Princeton NJ is mid-way between NYC and Philadelphia and hosts a very prestigious university, I decided to put Princeton University in its own geographic designation rather that to award it to either city who may claim it. After making your own observations about Tables 23(a) and 23(b), we’ll proceed on to Lesson 2, and come back to Tables 23(a) and 23(b) for a closer look in another post.

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Lesson 2 • Independent Verification of Initial Conclusions
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22. Ranking the College Ranking Services

1. Niche (and it’s not even close)
2. The Princeton Review
3. Forbes
4. U.S. News

In Post #6 ‘Concluding Remarks’, I provided rigorous explanations for the order in which I ranked the College Ranking Services. If you read them carefully, you will correctly conclude that no credible case can be made for ranking the four services in any different order from the order I presented, nor can any credible case can be made for including any additional College Ranking Services beyond the Big Four that I have meticulously analysed in this comprehensive study. In short, my conclusions were a slam dunk. But in many real-life business situations, you will find that your initial business decision, recommendation, or conclusion it is not as clear-cut as that example.

In such instances, your best move is to seek independent verification of your initial conclusions. With adequate research, more often than not you can find published reports, articles, findings from relevant symposia, published legal precedents, etc., etc., that you can use to convince yourself and your superiors that your initial conclusions are indeed correct. And it’s far, far better to have this independent verification firmly embedded in your report, rather than being questioned about it after your report is read by your superiors. I use the plural of superior to imply that approval for major business decisions is granted by the company’s Board of Directors, but you will not be presenting your case to the Board unless your CEO endorses your position.

Let us now proceed with Lesson #2 • Independent Verification of the rankings of the College Ranking Services listed above. But where do we start? The beginning of your Report is usually the best place if your report is well-researched an well-written. The first step is to know precisely what you want to verify. The second step is to survey the information readily available to you. The third step is to identify which particular bits of available information will verify your initial conclusion.

4. Methodology – Forbes College Rankings

18.2 2. Criticisms of the U.S. News & World Report’s College Rankings – Wikipedia

Critics charged that U.S. News intentionally changed its methodology every year so that the rankings change and they can sell more magazines. A San Francisco Chronicle article argues that "almost all of US News factors are redundant and can be boiled down to one characteristic: the size of the college or university's endowment."

19.2 The Sly Logic Behind Forbes Crazy College Rankings - Matt Pressman, Vanity Fair – August 14, 2009

Two of the easiest ways for a publication to get attention are to (1) Make a list and (2) Make an outrageous, contrarian argument. Forbes employed both methods in its report on "America's Best Colleges," which it published last week.

Forbes had to work hard to differentiate themselves from the standard-setting U.S. News and World Report best colleges list, and to that effect, they came up with a thoroughly bizarre methodology.

And that’s all we need . . . apart from this:

Forbes Best Colleges 2019 - Methodology – Entire text copied on April 1, 2020

METHODOLOGY: BEHIND THE RANKING

The rankings are based on six general categories:

Alumni Salary (20%), a combination of early and midcareer salaries as reported by the federal College Scorecard and PayScale data and research;

Student Satisfaction (20%), which includes results from Niche’ 2018 surveys on professor quality and data, and freshman retention rates from the federal IPEDS website;

Student Debt (20%), which rewards schools for low student debt loads and default rates;

American Leaders (15%), which is based on our Forbes Who’s Who database of successful people, including billionaires, powerful women, 30 Under 30 honorees, leaders in public service and in private enterprise, and more;

On-Time Graduation Rate (12.5%), which accounts for both four- and six-year rates; and

Academic Success (12.5%), which rewards schools whose alumni win prestigious scholarships and fellowships like the Rhodes and the Fulbright or have earned Ph.Ds.

… and that is the independent verification we were looking for. More on this in the following Post #8.

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HLOH Business Review Case 1 • FORBES’ DILEMMA
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1983 • U.S. News & World Report publishes its first "America's Best Colleges" report.

1992 • The Princeton Review publishes its first "Best Colleges" rankings.

2007 • College Prowler (rebranded as “Niche” in 2013) makes their content available online for a subscription fee.

2008 • Forbes publishes its first "Top Colleges" rankings.

Forbes had to work hard to differentiate themselves from the standard-setting U.S. News and World Report best colleges list.

FORBES’ DILEMMA

In June 2007, Steve Forbes – the wealthy CEO and Editor-in-Chief of Forbes Magazine – became aware of the widespread criticism of the U.S. News and World Report college and university rankings, and realized that there was a new opportunity for Forbes Magazine in the college rankings market that had been dominated by U.S. News since 1983, when U.S. News first created college rankings.

Forbes magazine was already well-known for its lists and rankings, including of the richest Americans (Forbes 400) and the America's Wealthiest Celebrities (Forbes Celebrity 100). By 2007, U.S. News had such a dominate position in the college rankings market that any potential new competitors in the market faced the real possibility of being unnoticed.

But in March 2007, the situation changed dramatically when Sarah Lawrence College fired a torpedo at the U.S. News college rankings in a shot that was heard around the country.

With the U.S. News college rankings under fire and wounded, Steve Forbes now had the opportunity to enter the market – which he decided to do. Steve Forbes summoned Michael Noer, the Executive Editor of Forbes Magazine, into his office and said: ”Mike – the U.S. News took just a hit, and we gotta get into the College Rankings market by next summer. Put someone on it, but do something different, and while you’re at it, push the sales of other Forbes publications with your rankings. This could be a gold mine for us if you do it right.”

You are now Michael Noer and the FORBES’ DILEMMA is how to create College Rankings to challenge those of U.S. News while boosting the sales of other Forbes publications.

Your Assignment: Create a college rankings methodology which meets the requirements specified by your boss, Steve Forbes. Your chosen methodology (i.e., criteria and weighting factors) must produce credible results and be cost-effective (because Forbes is a business – not a public service). Your assignment must be completed by the end of July 2008 – in time for publication in August, 2008.

Correct Answer: Show some backbone. Send your résumé to prospective employers for whom you might prefer working. Then politely inform Steve Forbes that the assignment he gave you is next-to-impossible with the constraints he has imposed – IF the proposed college rankings are intended to have any credibility with academia or Forbes’ customers. Then explain the situation to him in as much detail as he will tolerate. If Mr. Forbes accepts your honest explanation, you’re home free. If he doesn’t, you can kiss your next promotion (and maybe your present job) good-bye. That’s why you send out your résumé before you talk to your boss. Then, pour yourself a glass of the best single malt scotch you can afford, listen to Pink Floyd’s Dogs, and look forward to better days ahead.

What Michael Noer actually did: See the following Post #8.

You gotta be crazy, you gotta have a real need
You gotta sleep on your toes, and when you're on the street
You gotta be able to pick out the easy meat with your eyes closed
And then moving in silently, down wind and out of sight
You gotta strike when the moment is right without thinking

And after a while, you can work on points for style
Like the club tie, and the firm handshake
A certain look in the eye and an easy smile
You have to be trusted by the people that you lie to
So that when they turn their backs on you,
You'll get the chance to put the knife in

You gotta keep one eye looking over your shoulder
You know it's going to get harder, and harder, and harder as you get older
And in the end you'll pack up and fly down south
Hide your head in the sand,
Just another sad old man
All alone and dying of cancer

And when you loose control, you'll reap the harvest you have sown
And as the fear grows, the bad blood slows and turns to stone
And it's too late to lose the weight you used to need to throw around
So have a good drown, as you go down, all alone
Dragged down by the stone (stone, stone, stone, stone, stone)

I gotta admit that I'm a little bit confused
Sometimes it seems to me as if I'm just being used
Gotta stay awake, gotta try and shake off this creeping malaise
If I don't stand my own ground, how can I find my way out of this maze?

Deaf, dumb, and blind, you just keep on pretending
That everyone's expendable and no-one has a real friend
And it seems to you the thing to do would be to isolate the winner
And everything's done under the sun
And you believe at heart, everyone's a killer

Who was born in a house full of pain
Who was trained not to spit in the fan
Who was told what to do by the man
Who was broken by trained personnel

Who was fitted with collar and chain
Who was given a pat on the back
Who was breaking away from the pack
Who was only a stranger at home

Who was ground down in the end
Who was found dead on the phone
Who was dragged down by the stone.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

Post #8
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The Forbes College Rankings: A Costly Exercise in Futility
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America's Best Colleges 2008 – [writer not named], Forbes - August 13, 2008

Listing of America's Best Colleges 2008 – Forbes - August 13, 2008

Rank • Name • State • Cost • Freshman Class Size

6 • United States Military Academy • NY • NA • 1,272
12 • Wabash College • IN • $35,550 • 250
13 • Centre College • KY • $37,000 • 316
14 • Massachusetts Institute of Technology • MA • $48,200 • 1,067
23 • Stanford University • CA • $49,227 • 1,721
76 • Georgetown University • DC • $51,466 •1,582
225 • Xavier University • OH • $36,320 • 858
244 • Villanova University • PA • $47,160 • 1,604

America's Best Colleges 2008 – Methodology – [writer not named], Forbes - August 13, 2008

The Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) compiled its rankings using five components:

1. Listing of Alumni in the 2008 Who's Who in America (25%)
2. Student Evaluations of Professors from Ratemyprofessors.com (25%)
3. Four- Year Graduation Rates (16 2/3%)
4. Enrollment-adjusted numbers of students and faculty receiving nationally competitive awards (16 2/3%)
5. Average four year accumulated student debt of those borrowing money (16 2/3%)

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America's Best Colleges 2009 – [writer not named], Forbes - August 5, 2009

America's Best Colleges 2009 - Methodology – [writer not named], Forbes - August 5, 2009

Ranking Factors and Weights

The Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) compiled its college rankings using seven components (the weightings are listed in parentheses):

1. Listings of Alumni in the 2008 edition of Who's Who in America (12.5%)
2. Salaries of Alumni from PayScale.com (12.5%)
3. Student Evaluations from Ratemyprofessors.com (25%)
4. Four-Year Graduation Rates (16.66%)
5. Students Receiving Nationally Competitive Awards (8.33%)
6. Faculty Receiving Awards for Scholarship and Creative Pursuits (5%)
7. Four-year Debt Load for Typical Student Borrowers (20%)

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America's Best Colleges 2010 – David M. Ewalt, Forbes - August 12, 2010

America's Best Colleges 2010 - Methodology – [writer not named], Forbes - August 11, 2010

The Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP), in conjunction with Forbes, compiled its college rankings using five general categories, with several components within each general category. The weightings are listed in parentheses:

No. 1: Student Satisfaction (27.5%)
Student Evaluations from RateMyProfessor.com (17.5%)
Freshman-to-Sophomore Retention Rates (5%)
Student Evaluations from MyPlan.com (5%)

No. 2: Postgraduate Success (30%)
Salary of Alumni from Payscale.com (15%)
Listings of Alumni in Who's Who in America (10%)
Alumni in Forbes/CCAP Corporate Officers List (5%)

No. 3: Student Debt (17.5%)
Four-year Debt Load for Typical Student Borrower (12.5%)
Student Loan Default Rates (5%)

No. 4: Four-year Graduation Rate (17.5%)
Actual Four-year Graduation Rate (8.75%)
Predicted vs. Actual Four-year Graduation Rate (8.75%)

No. 5: Competitive Awards (7.5%)
Student Nationally Competitive Awards (7.5%)

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In August 2011, Michael Noer (the Executive Editor of Forbes Magazine) took charge of the rankings and changed their name from ‘America's Best Colleges’ to America's Top Colleges, but it resulted in a step backwards:

America's Top Colleges 2011 – Michael Noer, Executive Editor of Forbes Magazine - August 3, 2011

For the second year in a row, Williams College, a small, western-Massachusetts liberal arts school, has been named as the best undergraduate institution in America. With total annual costs adding up to nearly $55,000, a Williams education is certainly not cheap, but the 2,000 undergraduates here have among the highest four-year graduation rates in the country, win loads of prestigious national awards like Rhodes and Marshall Scholarships.

The complete methodology is available below, and in .pdf format here.

I strongly urge all readers to click on the America's Top Colleges 2011. Contrary to what the Executive Editor of Forbes Magazine wrote on the Forbes homepage, there is no Methodology shown whatsoever, so I clicked on .pdf format link and this is what it showed for Forbes 2011 Methodology:

Center for College Affordability and Productivity

Electronics for College
LAPTOPS AND TABLETS
SCIENTIFIC CALCULATORS FOR STUDENTS
OTHER ELECTRONICSVOICE RECORDERS FOR LECTURES AT COLLEGE

Stationery For College
PLANNERS
PAPER NOTEBOOKS
BINDERS
PENS AND PENCILS
… The 4 Best Pens For Note Taking In College

Backpacks, Bags & Accessories For College Students
BACKPACKS AND MESSENGER BAGS
TOTE BAGS
LAUNDRY BAGS
… The 4 Best Laundry Bags For College Students
WATCHES
… The 4 Best Watches for Nursing Students & Nurses
WATER BOTTLES
… The 4 Best Water Bottles For College Students

Seriously? This was clearly not one of Michael Noer’s better efforts. It is also worth noting that the Center for College Affordability and Productivity chose Williams College (total annual costs: $55,000) as the best undergraduate institution in America for the second year in a row. A year later, Michael Noer included his Methodology 2012 statement in the text of his main article (as opposed to a separate linked article, as Forbes had done from 2008 through 2011). He kept it brief.
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America's Best Colleges 2012 – Michael Noer, Executive Editor of Forbes Magazine - August 1, 2012

The rankings are based on five general categories: post graduate success (32.5%), which evaluates alumni pay and prominence, student satisfaction (27.5%), which includes professor evaluations and freshman to sophomore year retention rates, debt (17.5%), which penalizes schools for high student debt loads and default rates, four-year graduation rate (11.25%) and competitive awards (11.25%)

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In 2013, Caroline Howard took over the helm from Michael Noer, who never seemed to have his heart in it anyway. Caroline Howard’s debut effort was characterized by a more ‘folksy’ writing style and a huge photo of Stanford football fans. In 2013, Caroline Howard also brought back the stand-alone Method Statement, which she also wrote.

America's Top Colleges 2013 – Caroline Howard, Forbes – July 24, 2013

ABOUT Caroline Howard: “My stories highlight and explore the major stories of the day through the lens of education, power and innovation.”

See CCAP's full methodology here.

Student Satisfaction (25%)
Post-Graduate Success (35%)
Student Debt (17.5%)
Graduation Rate (11.25%) … considering both the actual graduation rate (8.75%) and the actual vs. predicted rate (2.5%).
Nationally Competitive Awards (11.25%)

Also In 2013, Forbes’ Abram Brown called out the cheaters and slapped them with a two-year suspension from Forbes rankings, while failing to notice that his boss changed their name from ‘America's Best Colleges’ to America's Top Colleges in 2011.

Why Forbes Removed 4 Schools From Its America's Best Colleges Rankings – Abram Brown, Forbes – July 24, 2013

Over the next seven years, Richard C. Vos, the admission dean at Claremont McKenna College, provided falsified data--the numbers behind our ranking of Claremont McKenna in America's Top Colleges--to the Education Department and others, artificially increasing SAT and ACT scores and lowering the admission rate, providing the illusion, if not the reality, that better students were coming to Claremont McKenna. He got away with it thanks to a disturbing lack of oversight; he was trusted to hand-calculate the data and submit it without review. What had made this longtime employee break bad? "He felt the same pressure to deliver as any executive does," Claremont McKenna spokesman Max Benavidez says. (Vos, who resigned in January 2012, couldn't be reached for comment.)

Claremont McKenna isn't the only top college that lied. Bucknell University doctored SAT results from 2006 to 2012; Emory University provided numbers for admitted students rather than enrolled ones for more than a decade; and Iona College lied about acceptance and graduation rates, SAT scores and alumni giving for nine years starting in 2002. All have since fessed up and claim to have instituted better practices. As a penalty for their dishonesty--and an acknowledgment of the growing scope of the problem--we are removing the four institutions from our list of the country's best schools for two years.

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America's Top Colleges 2014 – Caroline Howard, Forbes – July 30, 2014

Have suggestions for next year’s list? Leave your ideas in the comments and help us curate Top Colleges 2015.

America's Best Colleges 2014 - Methodology – Forbes - August 12, 2014

The complete methodology is available below.

Student Satisfaction (25%)
Post-Graduate Success (32.5%)
Student Debt (25%)
Graduation Rate (7.5%)
Academic Success (10%)

Some readers may disagree with the way we construct our rankings or the weights we apply to the data. Or they may want us to consider other variables, such as state-of-the-art labs or collaborations with local businesses or government. Let us know if we missed an important component below in comments.

Fair play to Caroline Howard for being the first Forbes’ employee to realize that Forbes’ Methodology (and college rankings) were utterly useless for the first seven years of their existence, and asking for help from high school students to do her job as Forbes’ resident expert on College Rankings. While highly embarrassing for her personally, it was a better effort than any of her predecessors.
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America's Top Colleges Ranking 2015 – Caroline Howard, Forbes – July 29, 2015

America's Top Colleges Ranking 2015 - Methodology - Caroline Howard, Forbes – July 29, 2015

Student Satisfaction (25%)

In a significant change from past years, we are including social media into our metrics. During the months leading up to the rankings' release we ran a targeted student satisfaction survey on Facebook. Respondents were asked where they attended school and how satisfied they were with their experience on a scale from 1 to 5. FORBES is the first -- and only -- ranking to make use of dynamic social media in rankings.

Post-Graduate Success (32.5%)
Student Debt (25%)
Graduation Rate (7.5%)
Academic Success (10%)

Some readers may disagree with the way we construct our rankings or the weights we apply to the data. Or they may want us to consider other variables, such as state-of-the-art labs or collaborations with local businesses or government. Let us know if we missed an important component below in comments.

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Top Colleges Ranking 2016: The Full Methodology - Caroline Howard, Forbes – July 6, 2016

Post-Graduate Success (32.5%)
Student Debt (25%)
Student Satisfaction (25%)
Graduation Rate (7.5%)
Academic Success (10%)

Some readers may disagree with the way we construct our rankings or the weights we apply to the data. Or they may want us to consider other variables, such as state-of-the-art labs or collaborations with local businesses or government. Let us know if we missed an important component below in comments.

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Next batter up: Carter Coudriet, who stamped his own style on the Forbes’ rankings with a wording change to the Methodology statement and the introduction of Niche’s data into the Forbes’ rankings.

Top Colleges 2017: The Methodology - Carter Coudriet, Forbes – August 2, 2017

Post-Graduate Success (35%)
Student Debt (20%)
Student Experience (20%) - College is not merely a means to an end; the ideal college experience pairs long-term value with a 4+ year opportunity to establish lifelong relationships and to grow intellectually. To reward schools that create worthwhile experiences for students as well as graduates, we dedicated a fifth of our score to the student experience. Most this score (15%) went to freshman-to-sophomore retention rate, as recorded by the Department of Education. The thinking here is simple: if life at a school is good, students will stay.


For the remaining 5%, we partnered with comprehensive ranking site Niche (formerly known as College Prowler) to give value more specifically to schools with stand-out community and academic life. Five percent was evenly divided between Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Professors,” and “2017 Colleges with the Best Student Life.” Niche’s data sources include a survey administered to roughly 93,000 current students and recent alumni reviewing over 1,300 colleges.

Graduation Rate (12.5%)
Academic Success (12.5%)

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August 21, 2018 – Did Forbes Use Niche’s Net Price Data without Niche’s Permission in Forbes’ Top Colleges for 2018?

I strongly suspect they did. But as this a legal issue rather than a ‘college rankings’ issue, it is prudent to examine this issue as a law professor, noting that earning your J.D. and passing the Bar Exam after you receive your MBA is the best way to beat the Ivy-Leaguers that you will be competing against for promotion in top Fortune 500 companies.



”A copyright infringement occurs when the works protected by copyright law is used without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce or display the protected work, or to make derivative works. The copyright holder is typically the work's creator or a publisher. Copyright holders routinely invoke legal measures to prevent and penalize copyright infringement. Copyright infringement disputes are usually resolved through direct negotiation, a notice and take down process, or litigation in civil court. Trusting that I now have your full attention, we will now examine the evidence which suggest that Forbes did indeed use Niche’s Net Price Data without Niche’s permission in Forbes’ Top Colleges for 2018”.

We will begin with an examination of Forbes’ 2017 Methodology which states in part: we partnered with comprehensive ranking site Niche ... Five percent was evenly divided between Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Professors,” and “2017 Colleges with the Best Student Life.”

This is another way of saying that Forbes signed a contract with Niche in which the consideration was Niche’s permission for Forbes to use Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Professors,” and Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Student Life.” in Forbes’ college rankings, in return for an annual payment from Forbes. Most significantly, Forbes DID NOT INDICATE THAT THEIR 2017 CONTRACT WITH NICHE INCLUDED THE USE OF ANY DATA EXCEPT Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Professors,” and Niche’s “2017 Colleges with the Best Student Life.”.

By definition, a contract requires very precise wording (to enable adjudication if either party seeks remedy for a perceived Breach of Contract).

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Here Are America's Top Colleges For 2018 - Susan Adams, Forbes Staff – August 21, 2018

SEE FULL LIST OF TOP COLLEGES 2018

RANK • NAME • STATE • [NICHE’S] NET PRICE • TYPE • AVERAGE STUDENT DEBT • AVERAGE EARLY CAREER SALARY

Top Colleges 2018: The Methodology - Carter Coudriet, Forbes – August 21, 2018

Alumni Salary (20%)
Student Debt (20%)
Student Experience (20%)

We assume that students who believe their college experience is worthwhile will remain in school. Therefore we drew most of our student experience score, 15% of our total score, from a school’s first-year-to-sophomore retention rate as recorded by IPEDS, averaging the rates for the most recent three years. We drew the remainder of our student experience score, 5% of our total, from Niche, which administers surveys to more than 90,000 students and alumni. We used their survey data that measured both professor quality and student life. Both use a GPA scale: An A for professor satisfaction would give a school a 4.00 grade, a B a 3.00, and so on.

American Leaders List (15%)
Graduation Rate (12.5%)
Academic Success (12.5%)

Wow! Not a mention anywhere in Forbes’ 2018 Methodology Statement about adding NICHE’S NET PRICE to their Rankings Methodology, despite it being the biggest change ever in said Methodology. The big green Niche logo was prominently displayed in Forbes’ Methodology, but no mention whatsoever about [NICHE’S] NET PRICE or what weighting was given to that specific and very important factor. An anomaly! I like investigating anomalies, because I am usually rewarded with the discovery of something the writer was trying to hide. This one looked like a potential jackpot, but I didn’t bother to pursue it at the time, because Forbes’ on-line College Rankings have been a waste of pixels since Day 1.

If you perform a very thorough internet search (as I did), you will not find any ‘hits’ suggesting that Niche initiated any litigation against Forbes, but as the vast majority of out-of-court settlements include a precisely-written non-disclosure clause, this did not surprise me.
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America's Top Colleges 2019 – Justin Conklin, Carter Coudriet, and Caroline Howard, Forbes Magazine - August 15, 2019

THE LIST: AMERICA’S TOP COLLEGES 2019

RANK • NAME • STATE • [NICHE’S] NET PRICE • TYPE • AVERAGE STUDENT DEBT • AVERAGE EARLY CAREER SALARY

1 • Harvard University • Massachusetts • $14,327 • Private not-for-profit • $7,372 • $74,800
2 • Stanford University • California • $13,261 • Private not-for-profit •$8,155 • $79,000
3 • Yale University • Connecticut • $18,627 • Private not-for-profit • $4,962 • $70,300
15 • Georgetown University • District Of Columbia • $30,107 • Private not-for-profit • $6,358 • $66,400
24 • United States Naval Academy • Maryland • $0 • Public • $0 • $80,100
32 • United States Military Academy • New York • $0 • Public • $0 • $80,200
43 • United States Air Force Academy • Colorado • $0 • Public • $0 • $76,300
53 • United States Coast Guard Academy • Connecticut • $0 • Public • $0 • $67,300
66 • United States Merchant Marine Academy • New York • $6,758 • Public • $5,414 • $80,600
72 • Villanova University • Pennsylvania • $41,858 • Private not-for-profit • $8,420 • $65,100

Top Colleges 2019: The Methodology - Carter Coudriet, Forbes – August 15, 2019

The rankings are based on six general categories: Alumni Salary (20%), a combination of early and midcareer salaries as reported by the federal College Scorecard and PayScale data and research; Student Satisfaction (20%), which includes results from Niche surveys on professor quality and data, and freshman retention rates from the federal IPEDS website; Debt (20%), which rewards schools for low student debt loads and default rates; American Leaders (15%), which is based on our Forbes database of successful people, including billionaires, powerful women, 30 Under 30 honorees, leaders in public service and in private enterprise, and more; On-Time Graduation Rate (12.5%), which accounts for both four- and six-year rates; and Academic Success (12.5%), which rewards schools whose alumni win prestigious scholarships and fellowships like the Rhodes and the Fulbright or have earned Ph.Ds.)

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22. Ranking the College Ranking Services

1. Niche (and it’s not even close)
2. The Princeton Review
3. Forbes
4. U.S. News

Given that the Forbes’ college ranking have been an unmitigated disaster since their first edition in August 2008, many of you may wonder why I ranked Forbes well above the US News rankings. As I explained in detail at the bottom of Post #6 above, US News deliberately manipulates their criteria and weighting factors to achieve the results they want to publish, and they do this annually. In addition, you can find countless articles similar to this one:

Gaming the College Rankings – The New York Times - January 31, 2012

Several colleges in recent years have been caught gaming the system — in particular, the avidly watched U.S. News & World Report rankings — by twisting the meanings of rules, cherry-picking data or just lying.

In one recent example, Iona College in New Rochelle, north of New York City, acknowledged last fall that its employees had lied for years not only about test scores, but also about graduation rates, freshman retention, student-faculty ratio, acceptance rates, and alumni giving. Other institutions have found ways to manipulate the data without outright dishonesty.

In 2008, Baylor University offered financial rewards to admitted students to retake the SAT in hopes of increasing its average score. Admissions directors say that some colleges delay admission of low-scoring students until January, excluding them from averages for the class admitted in September, while other colleges seek more applications to report a lower percentage of students accepted.

Last year, the law schools of Villanova University and the University of Illinois acknowledged that they had misreported some statistics; Villanova conceded that its deception was intentional, while Illinois did not say. In 2009, a number of institutions were found to be inflating their percentages of full-time professors — another criterion used in ranking systems.

Repeated revelations of manipulation show the importance of the rankings in the minds of prospective students, their guidance counselors, parents, the alumni considering donations, the professors weighing job offers — and, of course, the colleges themselves.

“The reliance on this is out of hand,” said Jon Boeckenstedt, the associate vice president who oversees admissions at DePaul University in Chicago. “It’s a nebulous thing, comparing the value of a college education at one institution to another, so parents and students and counselors focus on things that give them the illusion of precision.”

The mixed feelings in the academic world were summed up in a report last year by the National Association for College Admission Counseling: Most college admissions officers and high school counselors have a low opinion of the U.S. News rankings.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

Post #9
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HLOH Business Review Case No. 2
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Before introducing HLOH Business Review Case No. 2, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to Xudash and sju88grad for providing me with the teaching material for Case No. 2, and to Hoopfan for setting the record straight. We’ll begin here:

Link:

2020 RANKINGS - THE BEST 164 CATHOLIC COLLEGES IN AMERICA - Niche Best Catholic Colleges

2. Georgetown University (National Ranking: #24 of 1,626) ==> No change.
4. Villanova University (National Ranking: #81 of 1,626) ==> Up 2 places.
10. University of Dayton (National Ranking: #150 of 1,626) ==> Down 1 place.
12. Creighton University (National Ranking: #180 of 1,626) ==> No change.
17. Marquette University (National Ranking: #206 of 1,626) ==> Down 9 places.
21. Providence College (National Ranking: #235 of 1,626) ==> Down 11 places.
22. DePaul University (National Ranking: #238 of 1,626) ==> Down 5 places.
28. Seton Hall University (National Ranking: #280 of 1,626) ==> Up 12 places.

45. Xavier University (National Ranking: #392 of 1,626) ==> Down 16 places.
77. St. John's University (National Ranking: #639 of 1,626) ==> Down 28 places.

How Much Is Your College-Basketball Team Worth? - Andrew Beaton, The Wall Street Journal - April 8, 2019

RANK SCHOOL ... VALUATION ... 1-YR VALUE CHANGE

18. University of Dayton .... $100,010,000 ... 18.40%
26. Marquette University ..... $72,400,000 .... 4.50%
28. Villanova University ....... $71,080,000 ... 64.90%
38. Xavier University .......... $61,870,000 ..... 3.30%
50. Georgetown University ... $50,270,000 ... -13.90%

Link:

Fieldhouse Flyer’s post was ridiculous. Overstating a program's value and institution's position. Fieldhouse Flyer’s idiocy and reliance on bad data to defend his weak position is more entertaining than annoying.

Xudash - concerning the valuation of UD’s basketball program, your complaint should be addressed to the Wall Street Journal – not me – but please feel free to post a link to reputable source that you consider to be more accurate, to enable me to offer an objective critique of ‘your’ proposed alternative data. Due to your lack of clarity, I was unable to ascertain the basis of your complaint that I overstated UD’s institutional fit with the Big East schools, but in Post #2 above, Tables 6(b), 6(c) and 6(d) show the University of Dayton to be better institutional fit for the Big East than Xavier University. As you did not specify which data in my post you consider to be ‘bad’, I am unable to address that particular complaint.

BTW Xudash – before reading on, do remember that you opened this can of worms, and without a single fact in your preposterous, dishonest post.

Link:

Stop with the postings about the academic reputations of the schools......you can find dozens and dozens of ranking services that can fit whatever narrative you are trying to promote.....

sju88grad – please carefully read the references in Past 1 “Introduction” in Post #1 above. You will find a consensus among publication that the Big Four College Ranking Services are U.S. News, Niche, The Princeton Review, and Forbes – not the “dozens and dozens” to which you refer. As stated previously, The Princeton Review does not provide an overall ranking for the reviewed schools, and both the U.S. News and Forbes ranking have been widely discredited since 2007. If you wish to make a case for another set of rankings being more widely-accepted, take your best shot, and I’ll take mine.

Link:

Anyone who tries to defend X as a better academic institution than Dayton loses credibility right away.

Bingo. We have a winner, so I will now set the stage for HLOH Business Review Case No. 2 with some relevant verifiable numbers and articles.
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Link:

1996 • On September 23rd, Stanford President Gerhard Casper sent a letter to James Fallows, editor of U.S. News & World Report, stating: "As the president of a university that is among the top-ranked universities, I hope I have the standing to persuade you that much about these rankings - particularly their specious formulas and spurious precision - is utterly misleading."

1998 • Stanford posted an alternative database on its website stating: "This page is offered in contrast to commercial guides that purport to "rank" colleges; such rankings are inherently misleading and inaccurate. Stanford believes the following information, presented without arbitrary formulas, provides a better foundation for prospective students and their families to begin comparing and contrasting schools." It has since been posted annually as the "Stanford University Common Data Set."

In the following years, most universities voluntarily chose to follow Stanford University’s Common Data Set format.
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Xavier University Common Data Sets: 2003-2004 to 2019-2020 – Xavier University – September 2019

Xavier University Common Data Set 2003-2004 – Xavier University (37 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 3,915
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,711
Grand Total All Students: 6,626

ACT Composite:
30-36: 18%
24-29: 53%
18-23: 28%

Xavier University Common Data Set 2018-2019 – Xavier University (32 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 4,997
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,135
Grand Total All Students: 7,132

ACT Composite:
30-36: 16%
24-29: 47%
18-23: 35%

Xavier University Common Data Set 2019-2020 – Xavier University (32 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 5,047
Total all graduate and professional students: 1,946
Grand Total All Students: 6,993

ACT Composite:
30-36: 16%
24-29: 48%
18-23: 34%

University of Dayton Common Data Set 2019-20 – University of Dayton (36 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 8,483
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,990
Grand Total All Students: 11,473

ACT Composite:
30-36: 21%
24-29: 50%
18-23: 28%

From the Common Data Sets posted above, it can be seen that:

• Xavier’s academic standards have dropped considerably since the 2003-2004 school year.
• Xavier’s enrolment dropped this year, while the University of Dayton had a record high enrolment in 2019-20.
• Xavier’s academic standards continue to be well below those of the University of Dayton (as always).
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Decline Of Catholic Universities In Philly Explained - The Odyssey - April 04, 2016

A smaller student body means a smaller pool of tuition money to collect as well. Universities, like St. Joseph and La Salle derive 80 percent of their revenue from student tuition and fees. As a result, these schools must have a constant supply of applicants and enrollment. When enrollments are down, the schools face a shortfall in their budgets and must make tough decisions. That's what some Catholic schools are experiencing, right now.

Big Catholic schools like Villanova University remain unaffected by this trend due to their large size and their basketball team which will bring in more applicants due to their recent NCAA wins.

La Salle University’s Tuition Reset Boosts Enrollment While Skeptics Question Strategy - Art & Science Group LLC - September 19, 2017

La Salle University officials have decided a change in strategy was necessary after years of declining enrollment, leading to a 28.7% reduction in tuition at the start of this school year, said Janie Lucas, chief marketing and communications officer. The reduction in cost - to $28,800 from $40,400 - reduces tuition to 2008 levels, before fees and room and board, Lucas said. La Salle, located in Philadelphia, is a private, Catholic liberal arts university.

Long-term viability: Tuition resets are not a viable strategy for financially distressed universities, said John Lawlor, principal and founder at The Lawlor Group, a higher education marketing firm. Schools operating from a position of strength are the ones who see success with a tuition reset strategy, he said.

Very few schools have seen success from resetting tuition, said Craig Goebel, principal at Art & Science Group, LLC, a strategic group for public and private colleges and universities.

Catholic colleges seek creative solutions in tough times - National Catholic Reporter - April 23, 2018

The nation's more than 260 Catholic colleges and universities collectively serve some 875,000 students. The average enrollment for a Catholic school during the 2015-16 academic year was 3,756 students, with a median enrollment of 2,581, according to the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities. From the high end of enrollments in the tens of thousands to much smaller student populations on smaller campuses, these schools have approached financial challenges in a variety of ways, and with varied success.

Some out-of-the-box thinking has generated public outcry, which suggests that some schools may be in danger of gaining the whole world while losing their own souls. Philadelphia's La Salle University recently decided to sell dozens of its most important artworks over alumni and faculty protests.

"Small institutions with limited endowments are facing tough times," say Melanie Morey (Director of the San Francisco Archdiocese's Office of Catholic Identity Assessment and Formation), co-author of the 2006 book Catholic Higher Education: A Culture in Crisis with Jesuit Fr. John Piderit.

Selected Schools - Sorted in Order of Endowment*

Endowment • Institution • Founded • Type • Enrolment

$1.82 billion • Georgetown University • 1789 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 17,858

$0.767 billion • Villanova University • 1842 • Catholic (Augustinian) • 10,735
$0.749 billion • St. John's University • 1870 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 20,448
$0.698 billion • Marquette University • 1881 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 11,745
$0.697 billion • DePaul University • 1898 • Catholic (Vincentian) • 23,799
$0.604 billion • University of Dayton • 1850 • Catholic (Marianist) • 10,920
$0.587 billion • Creighton University • 1878 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 8,236

$0.462 billion • Univ. of Connecticut • 1881 • Public • 32,257
$0.265 billion • Seton Hall University • 1856 • Catholic (Diocesan) • 9,627
$0.234 billion • Providence College • 1917 • Catholic (Dominican) • 4,533
$0.214 billion • Butler University • 1855 • Private (Christian) • 4,848

$0.169 billion • Xavier University • 1831 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 6,538

* The endowment amounts shown above were copied from each school’s Wikipedia webpage in April 2020, and are higher than the endowment amounts shown on Wikipedia’s Big East Conference webpage, which have not been updated recently. The enrolments have not been updated, and are still as shown on Wikipedia’s Big East Conference webpage.

Link:

Do Dayton and Xavier still compete for high school students as 'customers' ?

Yes. And that’s still a major reason for the very strong animosity toward the University of Dayton by many of Xavier’s students and alumni. Many of them were refused admission to UD before they decided to attend Xavier, and that situation is very likely to continue indefinitely.

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HLOH Business Review Case 2 • FATHER GRAHAM’S DILEMMA
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You are now Fr. Michael Graham, S.J. (President of Xavier University since 2001) and your dilemma is How to save Xavier University? A big task indeed.

Your Assignment: Identify the possible strategies available to keep Xavier University financially viable in the face of a saturated regional market, noting that nearby University of Dayton is a richer, stronger competitor in that market.

Correct Answer: Do exactly what Father Graham did.

What Father Graham actually did: From 2004 to the present day, Fr. Graham has deliberately lowered Xavier’s academic standards and raised their tuition, as income from tuition is the biggest and most important source of revenue for the university. Lowering Xavier’s academic standards ensured that enrolment remained relatively stable, which was paramount for the school’s financial stability, and offset the effects of increases in tuition. Fr. Graham was obviously aware of the very similar financial difficulties experienced by La Salle University, and their significant lowering of tuition, but chose instead to raise Xavier’s tuition, which was a wise choice. In 2013, Father Graham prudently decided to eliminate 51 employees in a necessary cost-cutting exercise. It can be taken for granted that Fr. Graham kept a close eye on the building friction between the football schools and basketball schools in the old Big East, and undoubtedly kept in regular contact with his Jesuit counterparts in the Big East. When opportunity knocked in March 2013, the Xavier Musketeers had appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 11 of the previous 12 years, making Xavier the obvious first choice to join the new Big East. This raised Xavier University’s national profile, and helped maintain enrolment at the university.

Xavier University Joins The New Big East – Xavier University - March 20, 2013

CINCINNATI --- Xavier University President Michael J. Graham, S.J., announced today that Xavier is joining a 10-team conference with fellow private schools Butler, Creighton, DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall, and Villanova.

Xavier Employees Face Layoffs amid Financial Crisis – University Herald - July 20, 2013

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Position Eliminations at Xavier – Xavier University – July 2013

Fitch Upgrades Xavier University's Revenue Bonds to 'A'; Outlook Stable - FitchRatings.com – November 4, 2019

Fitch Ratings has upgraded to 'A' from 'A-' the rating on approximately $113 million of Ohio Higher Educational Facility Commission revenue bonds issued on behalf of Xavier University and removed the university from ‘Under Criteria Observation.’ In addition, Fitch has assigned an Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'A' to the university. The Rating Outlook is Stable.

NEW ISSUE REPORT: Xavier University, Ohio - FitchRatings.com – March 11, 2020

The 'bbb' revenue defensibility assessment reflects improving student quality and rising undergraduate enrollment constrained by a very competitive underlying market. Applications have risen over 38% since fall 2015, which has countered a weakening of Xavier's matriculation rate.

The university's dependence on tuition revenues makes it susceptible to enrollment pressures.

According to Fitch Ratings, Fr. Graham’s strategy has been a considerable success to date, giving the university some financial breathing room for the time being. But Fr. Graham’s strategy of lowering the university’s academic standards in order to maintain stable enrolment figures has come at a foreseeable cost: serious damage to Xavier’s academic reputation. The days of Xavier University being perceived as a respected academic institution are long gone, and Xavier now finds itself trapped in an unenviable peer group:


Best Colleges in America 2020 – Page 16 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price • SAT Range

385. Saint Mary’s College Indiana • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 82% • Net Price: $25,610 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#44 Catholic College)
386. Transylvania College (KY) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $26,125 • SAT Range: 1100-1310
387. Salisbury University (MD) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 62% • Net Price: $18,163 • SAT Range: 1080-1230
388. University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 78% • Net Price: $13,940 • SAT Range: Undisclosed
389. Ursinus College (PA) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 71% • Net Price: $31,351 • SAT Range: 1140-1320
390. Illinois State University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $19,489 • SAT Range: 1010-1190
391. University of Michigan - Dearborn • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 78% • Net Price: $10,533 • SAT Range: 1070-1290
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)
393. Dordt College (IA) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $26,273 • SAT Range: 1060-1360
394. William Jessup University (CA) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 59% • Net Price: $23,637 • SAT Range: 960-1170
395. Towson University (MD) • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 79% • Net Price: $16,148 • SAT Range: 1060-1200

The Table below shows that Xavier University is significantly overpriced relative to the other Big East schools.

NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 – SORTED BY NET PRICE

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

190. Butler University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 65% • Net Price: $38,051 • SAT Range: 1150-1320
235. Providence College • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $36,099 • SAT Range: 1160-1330 (#21 Catholic College)
81. Villanova University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 36% • Net Price: $35,491 • SAT Range: 1250-1440 (#4 Catholic College)
150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 (#10 Catholic College)
238. DePaul University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $32,927 • SAT Range: 1050-1260 (#22 Catholic College)
206. Marquette University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 89% • Net Price: $32,377 • SAT Range: 1130-1310 (#17 Catholic College)
180. Creighton University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $31,481 • SAT Range: 1070-1290 (#12 Catholic College)
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)

280. Seton Hall University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 73% • Net Price: $28,700 • SAT Range: 1140-1280 (#28 Catholic College)
24. Georgetown University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 16% • Net Price: $27,420 • SAT Range: 1350-1520 (#2 Catholic College)
639. St. John's University • Overall Niche Grade: B • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $25,981 • SAT Range: 1060-1250 (#77 Catholic College)
163. University of Connecticut • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 48% • Net Price: $18,699 • SAT Range: 1210-1390

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Xavier University - Wikipedia

Xavier is a Catholic Liberal Arts University in Cincinnati, Ohio.

The other college debt crisis: Schools are going broke – CNBC - December 4, 2019

HIRAM, Ohio — Small, private liberal arts colleges — a staple of American academia since before the founding of the republic — are colliding with new realities including changing demographics, ever-increasing demand for technical skills and competition with bigger and richer schools. The result, in many cases, is not pretty.

Moody’s Investor Services estimates 1 in 5 small private colleges faces “fundamental stress” due to declining revenues, rising expenses and little pricing power when it comes to tuition. Analysts project 15 of the colleges will have closed in 2019 — the largest number in recent memory, and three times the rate just 10 years ago. And the trend shows no sign of letting up.

The closures are concentrated in the Northeast and Midwest, Fitzgerald said, where the demographic pressures — including an aging population — are the highest. “It is no secret that weighty financial challenges are pressing on liberal arts colleges throughout the country.” There is a new emphasis on technology

University of Dayton – School of Engineering – University of Dayton – 2019-20 Academic Year

Engineering that Matters: The University of Dayton is a national top-tier research Catholic, Marianist University.

$166 Million in sponsored engineering research & development.

No. 1 for federally sponsored materials engineering research in the nation.

No. 1 Catholic university in the nation for sponsored engineering research.

I am immensely proud of the civil engineering degree I earned at the University of Dayton, as it prepared me quite well for the MBA and JD degrees which followed at prestigious East Coast universities.

The Bottom Line: Medium-sized colleges with strong academic standards and strong endowments that offer a strong technical education (such as the University of Dayton) are in an excellent position to face the many challenges of the near future.

Small liberal arts colleges (such as Xavier University) are now an endangered species. Those with declining academic standards and small endowments are particularly at risk. And those colleges which are overpriced on their market that offer poor value for Net Price (such as Xavier University) are headed for the scrap heap in the near future. More on this in the following Post #10.

[Fieldhouse Flyer]

Post #10
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Coronavirus: The Death Knell for Xavier University?
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Link:

Finally, think what you will about Xavier‘s ability to block UD’s entrance, but you may want to come around to the reality that it firmly exists. And it is more than just about basketball as far as Xavier is concerned. The conference does not need another team in Ohio.

Before indulging in such nondialectical pronouncements, it is prudent to ensure that you have a firm grasp of alethiology – something you appear to lack.

I will not debate your contention that Xavier has the clout to block the University of Dayton from joining the Big East Conference, as it is now irrelevant. What is relevant is that Xavier University will be unable to block anyone from joining the Big East once Xavier University ceases to exist, and that day is approaching far more quickly than you realize. Xavier University has already established that Southwest Ohio is an excellent market for Big East basketball, and consequently, the University of Dayton will make an excellent replacement for Xavier after Xavier goes bust in a few years’ time.

I strongly recommend that you acquaint yourself with the following factual information prior to my forensic dissection of the gravamen of your supercilious post, bearing in mind that it was YOU who made the decision to open this can of worms with your post quoted above.
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Fewer Students Are Going To College. Here's Why That Matters - NPR - December 16, 2019

This fall, there were nearly 250,000 fewer students enrolled in college than a year ago, according to new numbers out Monday from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, which tracks college enrollment by student. "That's a lot of students that we're losing," says Doug Shapiro, who leads the research center at the Clearinghouse.

And this year isn't the first time this has happened. Over the past eight years, college enrollment nationwide has fallen about 11%. Every sector — public state schools, community colleges, for-profits and private liberal arts schools — has felt the decline, though it has been especially painful for small private colleges, where, in some cases, institutions have been forced to close.

UD expects record enrolment across programs this fall – Dayton Daily News - August 15, 2019

UC’s record enrollment tops projections: Final tally is 46,388 - University of Cincinnati - September 12, 2019

Coronavirus: 'Not clear if we will be back on campus this fall,' writes Miami University Dean - Max Londberg, Cincinnati Enquirer - March 30, 2020

Student enrollment confirmations are currently down 20% at Miami

Sara Kilpatrick, the executive director of the Ohio Conference AAUP said "I think that all colleges and universities are going to be facing some difficult financial realities, especially in the wake of COVID-19," but "we have to remember this is about educating students."

Miami had about $375 million more in unrestricted funds than Ohio University as of June 2019, according to state audit records, a discrepancy that Wagner emphasized as she discussed Ohio University's planned pause in cuts. "It's remarkable that Miami, in a robust and strong situation ... was not able to do something like that," she said. "If there was ever a time to dip into (Miami's $349 million) rainy-day fund, I would think it would be now." Johnson, the Miami spokesperson, wrote the university has "the highest financial score among Ohio's public universities based on the Ohio Department of Higher Education financial ratios."

Xavier University Historical Fall Enrolment 2009-2019 – Xavier University – September 2019

Xavier University’s enrolment declined in 2019.

NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 – SELECTED UNIVERSITIES IN OHIO

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

94. Ohio State University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $18,694 • SAT Range: 1240-1450 • Enrolment: 68,262
150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 • Enrolment: 11,473
160. University of Cincinnati • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 76% • Net Price: $21,050 • SAT Range: 1120-1340 • Enrolment: 46,388
170. Miami University (OH) • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $20,316 • SAT Range: 1190-1380 • Enrolment: 24,377
264. Ohio University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 78% • Net Price: $22,072 • SAT Range: 1070-1270 • Enrolment: 33,044
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 • Enrolment: 6,993

NICHE’S BEST COLLEGES IN AMERICA 2020 – SELECTED UNIVERSITIES IN OHIO - SORTED BY NET PRICE

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

Rank. School • Overall Niche Grade • Acceptance Rate • Net Price* • SAT Range

150. University of Dayton • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 72% • Net Price: $35,077 • SAT Range: 1100-1310 (#10 Catholic College)
392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190 • SAT Range: 1060-1240 (#45 Catholic College)
264. Ohio University • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 78% • Net Price: $22,072 • SAT Range: 1070-1270
160. University of Cincinnati • Overall Niche Grade: A • Acceptance Rate: 76% • Net Price: $21,050 • SAT Range: 1120-1340
170. Miami University (OH) • Overall Niche Grade: A- • Acceptance Rate: 68% • Net Price: $20,316 • SAT Range: 1190-1380
94. Ohio State University • Overall Niche Grade: A+ • Acceptance Rate: 52% • Net Price: $18,694 • SAT Range: 1240-1450

The Tables above shows that Xavier University is significantly overpriced in their regional market, relative to the quality of the school and its academics. The Tables above also show that the University of Dayton attracts better students than Xavier, and that those students are willing to pay $5,000 per year more to attend UD than to attend Xavier. In short, a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Dayton costs $20,000 more than a Bachelor’s Degree from Xavier University – and students and their parents are willing to pay that premium in record numbers.

"Small institutions with limited endowments are facing tough times," say Melanie Morey (Director of the San Francisco Archdiocese's Office of Catholic Identity Assessment and Formation), co-author of the 2006 book Catholic Higher Education: A Culture in Crisis with Jesuit Fr. John Piderit.

Endowment • Institution • Founded • Type • Enrolment

$0.604 billion • University of Dayton • 1850 • Catholic (Marianist) • 11,473
$0.169 billion • Xavier University • 1831 • Catholic (Jesuit) • 6,993

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Are we still on the same page here Xudash? Read on … it gets worse.

Xavier University Common Data Set 2003-2004 – Xavier University (37 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 3,915
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,711
Grand Total All Students: 6,626

Xavier University Common Data Set 2018-2019 – Xavier University (32 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 4,997 ==> Up 1,082 from 2003-2004
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,135 ==> Down 576 from 2003-2004
Grand Total All Students: 7,132 ==> Up 506 from 2003-2004

Xavier University Common Data Set 2019-2020 – Xavier University (32 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 5,047 ==> Up 50 from 2018-2019
Total all graduate and professional students: 1,946 ==> Down 189 from 2018-2019
Grand Total All Students: 6,993 ==> Down 139 from 2018-2019

University of Dayton Common Data Set 2018-19 – University of Dayton (36 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 8,617
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,624
Grand Total All Students: 11,241

University of Dayton Common Data Set 2019-20 – University of Dayton (36 pages)

Total all undergraduates: 8,483 ==> Down 134 from 2018-2019
Total all graduate and professional students: 2,990 ==> Up 366 from 2018-2019
Grand Total All Students: 11,473 ==> Up 232 from 2018-2019

With the University of Dayton being Xavier’s principle competitor in the Southwest Ohio market (for over 100 years), Fr. Graham would obviously be quite aware of the numbers above. With this introductory material now firmly in mind, we will return to the feature topic of this Post #10 – Coronavirus.
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Schools Brace For Revenue Drops, Consider Staff Layoffs – Nathan Allen, Poets and Quants – April 8, 2020

College presidents are prepping for revenue drops, according to data collected by ABC Insights, a higher education-focused research firm. Nearly three-quarters (72.1%) of college presidents responding to a survey conducted between March 27 and April 1 said they are considering laying off staff as part of a plan to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. However, 75.2% also suggested they’re considering “hunkering down” in response to the spread of COVID-19.

ABC Insights conducted the survey alongside the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AACU). Some 285 college presidents were invited to participate, and of those, 142 completed the survey. The majority of respondents were presidents of private, four-year institutions, followed by public four-year schools, and then public two-year community colleges.

Will the coronavirus kill liberal arts colleges? – The World University Rankings – April 10, 2020

With admissions already in decline, Brian Rosenberg wonders whether the end may finally be nigh for many colleges

Suggestions that the coronavirus crisis could be the final nail in the coffin for many struggling US liberal arts colleges are a variation on a familiar theme. Even in January, before the coronavirus became big news, it was reported that applications to US private colleges. In my state, Minnesota, they are down by about 5 per cent. That may not seem like much, until you remember that most of these institutions are highly tuition-dependent and have almost no margin for error.

It is hard to know, of course, if this is the beginning of a long-term trend or even the early stage of a sudden collapse. But it is certainly more than a blip. Many small private colleges have been under increased enrolment pressure for years.

No one really knows who coined the phrase “demography is destiny”, but, if not wholly true, it points us in an important direction. Economist Nathan Grawe has studied the impact of the decline in US fertility rates and anticipates a sharp decrease in the number of 18-year-olds in [color]2026[/color] – particularly in parts of the country where many private colleges are concentrated.

After Coronavirus, Colleges Worry: Will Students Come Back? – The New York Times – April 15, 2020

The pandemic has already cost universities millions of dollars. As they consider the possibility of remote classes into the fall, they’re worried about losing students, too.[/b]

Already, colleges have seen their endowments weakened, and worry that fund-raising efforts will founder even as many families need more financial aid. They also expect to lose international students, especially from Asia, because of travel restrictions and concerns about studying abroad. Foreign students, usually paying full tuition, represent a significant revenue source everywhere, from the Ivy League to community colleges. Some institutions are projecting $100 million losses for the spring, and many are now bracing for an even bigger financial hit in the fall, when some are planning for the possibility of having to continue remote classes.

Administrators anticipate that students grappling with the financial and psychological impacts of the virus could choose to stay closer to home, go to less expensive schools, take a year off or not go to college at all. A higher education trade group has predicted a 15 percent drop in enrollment nationwide, amounting to a $23 billion revenue loss.

In mid-March, Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the outlook for higher education from stable to negative, predicting that institutions with strong endowments and cash flow, like Harvard or Stanford, would weather the virus, while smaller ones would not. At places like the University of Chicago and Iowa State, students are petitioning their schools to cut tuition by as much as 50 percent for as long as the pandemic lasts.

Orientation day, said Richard Ekman, president of the Council of Independent Colleges, “is probably the first time you’re going to know who’s really going to show up.

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Faced with new adversity in the form of coronavirus and record enrolments at the University of Dayton and the University of Cincinnati, what did Fr. Graham do? Fr. Graham: (1) eliminated the requirement for applicants to take the ACT or SAT (to obscure direct comparisons with UD and UC), (2) he increased the Net Price to attend Xavier, and (3) announced his retirement in the spring of 2021.

Citing pressure on high school students, Xavier makes SAT, ACT scores optional for applicants - Max Londberg, Cincinnati Enquirer - December 15, 2019

Xavier University will no longer require applicants to submit an SAT or ACT score.

The private Jesuit Catholic university will join a "national movement" of institutions choosing to limit consideration of the tests, officials said in a news release Tuesday. Doug Ruschman, a Xavier spokesman, pointed to the pressure on high school students, who "have a lot going on, and the SAT and ACT can be very stressful."

But a spokesman for ACT, the nonprofit that provides the assessment, pointed to the universality of the test, allowing for institutions to better compare students from different schools. Spokeman Ed Colby said other academic markers, such as grades, can be more subjective.

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on March 25, 2020)

392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $30,190

Best Colleges in America 2020 – Niche.com – August 2019 (Data mined on April 17, 2020)

392. Xavier University • Overall Niche Grade: B+ • Acceptance Rate: 74% • Net Price: $31,240

President of Xavier University in Ohio stepping down - Associated Press - March 3, 2020

CINCINNATI — The longest-serving president of Xavier University in Ohio announced his retirement Monday. Rev. Michael J. Graham told university faculty, staff and students he was stepping down next year during Spring Convocation. Graham, 66, became the president of the Jesuit university in 2001, when about 6,600 students were enrolled at Xavier. Last year, the school had an estimated 7,000 students enrolled.

At 66 years of age, and with 20 years at the helm of the ‘flagship’, Fr. Graham has certainly earned the right to retire, as well as a standing ovation for two decades of outstanding leadership. Fr. Graham did not shy away from taking the tough decisions when necessary. His successor at Xavier will begin his stewardship in the shadow of a great man, but will immediately be faced with insurmountable problems – namely, the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, and fierce competition for students from UC, UD, Miami University, and Ohio State.
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Graduate Programs and the Death Spiral

Graduate programs have become a cash cow for struggling colleges - Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report.org - September 18, 2017

Schools are increasingly banking on the considerable revenues from graduate programs to subsidize their undergraduate divisions.

Cash-strapped private universities and colleges are relying on the money they take in from their graduate programs to stabilize increasingly wobbly budgets. It’s an effective solution to a big problem. But it also means that higher education’s money problems are being balanced on the backs of graduate students who face escalating debt.

Graduate education is a growth industry. As employers increasingly require master’s degrees, the number conferred per year has more than tripled from nearly 236,000 in 1970 to about 759,000 in 2015, the last period for which the figures are available from the U.S. Department of Education

With increasing demand come higher prices. Average graduate and professional school annual tuition at all universities and colleges has also more than doubled from $6,603 to $14,398 between 1988 and 2010, when adjusted for inflation, according to the Department of Education. At private institutions, it’s grown from $12,301 to $20,172.

Graduate Schools are an irresistible source of revenue for colleges and universities, said Andrew Policano, a professor of economics and public policy and former dean at the Paul Merage School of Business, University of California, Irvine. The big growth in loans has been in graduate schools. Fewer than 40 percent of master’s degree candidates get institutional financial aid — less than half the proportion of undergraduates who do.

Universities increasingly turn to graduate programs to balance their books - Jon Marcus, The Hechinger Report.org - April 23, 2019

The survival strategy is raising prices and increasing debt for graduate students

As the number of undergraduates steadily declines in seeming direct proportion to rising costs, debt and the many other obstacles faced by college students, graduate enrollment is quietly on the upswing. It’s being driven by the better job prospects and higher salaries people think it will bring them — and by a conscious strategy among universities like this one to add graduate programs that produce much-needed revenue. “Nowadays everyone’s going to graduate school.That’s what they tell you to do.”

That’s in part because the Net Price, or the amount students actually pay after discounts and financial aid, has increased nearly twice as fast for graduate as for undergraduate programs in the 10 years ending in 2016. “Graduate school is way more expensive than undergrad,” Rivero said.

Yet the number of graduate students continues to grow, up 38 percent since 2000, much faster than the increase in the number of undergraduates during that time, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Undergraduate enrollment has, in fact, dropped by 7 percent since 2010 — for reasons that include not only cost and aversion to debt, but also a decline in the number of 18- to 24-year-olds and an improving job market — while the number of graduate students keeps on rising.

“Graduate education is being used to subsidize undergraduate education. Graduate students feel like they’re just a cog in the machine.”

”Small, faith-based liberal arts institutions have to do this to survive”, said David Armstrong, who took over in August as president of a Catholic university. Several small liberal-arts colleges have already closed, plan to close at the end of this year or are publicly looking for merger partners.

The Net Price, or the amount students actually pay after discounts and financial aid, has increased nearly twice as fast for graduate as for undergraduate programs.

Radical Survival Strategies for Struggling Colleges - Jon Marcus, The New York Times - October 10, 2019

Colleges and universities that fail to adapt risk joining the average of 11 per year that the bond-rating firm Moody’s says have shut down in the last three years.

Thanks, among other reasons, to a decline in the number of 18-year-olds and low unemployment luring potential students straight into the work force, college enrollment is down by more than 2.9 million since the last peak, in the fall of 2011, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. More than 400 colleges and universities still had seats available for freshmen and transfer students after the traditional May 1 deadline to enroll for this fall, the National Association for College Admission Counseling reports.

More are likely to go under; Moody’s projects that the pace of college closings will soon reach 15 per year. “‘Midsize university’ is a sweet spot,” said Mr. Thorsett.

Colleges and universities are also pushing more students into graduate school, since this is typically a revenue producer for them, and graduate enrollment is a bright spot; it has kept rising, even as undergraduate enrollment is falling.

Xavier University Historical Fall Enrolment 2009-2019 – Xavier University – September 2019

Fall 2018 • Undergraduate Students: 4,997 • Graduate Students: 2,135 • Total Students: 7,132

Fall 2019 • Undergraduate Students: 5,047 • Graduate Students: 1,946 • Total Students: 6,993

At a time when Xavier University is increasingly desperate to increase its graduate enrolment in order to balance their books, Xavier is losing prospective graduate students to UC, UD, and Ohio State. This, in turn, is driving Xavier’s Net Price higher (in order to recoup the revenue lost from a fall in graduate student enrolment), which then results in the necessity to lower academic standards even further (in order to maintain undergraduate enrolment). This process is known as a Death Spiral, and the facts presented above in this Post #10 conclusively demonstrate that Xavier University has already embarked on the Death Spiral.
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2026: The Year of Reckoning

Fox TV Contract Year. Basketball Season

1. 2013-14 . . . . . 7. 2019-20
2. 2014-15 . . . . . 8. 2020-21
3. 2015-16 . . . . . 9. 2021-22
4. 2016-17 . . . . 10. 2022-23
5. 2017-18 . . . . 11. 2023-24
6. 2018-19 . . . . 12. 2024-25

The Coming College Enrollment Bust: It’s due to start in 2026 - Justin Fox, Bloomberg.com - May 30, 2019 [prior to the debut of coronavirus]

This article contains numerous graphs and charts illustrating the information presented within.

The decline in births that began in the U.S. in 2008 has already been long and deep enough that it’s going to shape the country’s future in a big way.

This drop is not nearly as sharp or as deep (yet) as the one that followed the baby boom of the late 1940s to early 1960s. But it will change things, and the changes will become apparent first at educational institutions. The number of public-school kindergartners in the U.S. began falling in 2014, and that decline will continue to work its way through the K-12 system in the coming years. By the second half of the 2020s, colleges and universities should start feeling it.

Nathan D. Grawe, an economics professor at Carleton College in Minnesota, said: “The late 2020s look to be a very poor time to be seeking a teaching post in higher education,” he warns in his book “Demographics and the Demand for Higher Education.” He also suggests that pressure to get rid of faculty tenure protections will intensify in the 2020s.

The overall college enrollment rate, which has actually slipped a little over the past decade, is not forecast to rise in the 2020s. This seems like a moment when leaders of regional four-year schools should be exploring all possible ways to make their offerings more relevant and affordable for those on the fence between attending college or not.

Five Ways COVID-19 Will Impact Fall College Enrollments - Derek Newton, Forbes - March 30, 2020

Leaders in higher education, as well as teachers, students and families, are responding, adapting to the abrupt and deep changes necessitated by COVID-19. Few are planning too far ahead.

Admissions offices and prospective freshmen don’t have that luxury. For them, planning for the fall began long ago and would normally be approaching its zenith right now. That’s more or less on hold as schools cannot plan courses, programs, tuition and fee rates – much of anything – with so much uncertainty. Nonetheless, we’re all looking ahead to fall 2020 as perhaps the earliest moment when higher education could begin to look as it did – maybe. Even if it does, it won’t be the same.

According to a recent survey by the college review and ranking service Niche, just 17% of college students are “considering transferring or taking at least one semester off based upon how their school responded” to the current crisis.

Competition for students will increase even more. The likely cascade of expanded admissions Katzman described will almost certainly make schools more competitive for students. The cost of competition and recruiting was already out of control, driving up actual college costs for students and taxpayers alike. But it’s going to get worse. “College recruitment will become more aggressive as colleges compete for students - and even more so with the reducing demographic pool of 18-year-olds,” said Diego Fanara, CEO of Unibuddy.

All education is local again. “I don’t think the students care as much as parents care,” Katzman of Noodle Partners said, “but students are going to go closer to home.

Colleges will have classes and programs this fall, their classes will have freshmen and returning students. That won’t change. What will be different is that those classes are likely to be far less geographically diverse, colleges will pay more for the students they get, and some smaller, less prestigious schools will be squeezed.

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The conference does not need another team in Ohio.

I agree. Ohio doesn’t need two Catholic universities in its Southwest corner, so one of them is going to go bust during this decade. Care to guess which one?

The Writing's on the Wall – Sam Smith, BBC music video - November 9, 2017

Fieldhouse Flyer’s idiocy and reliance on bad data to defend his weak position is more entertaining than annoying.

I trust that you found my factual reply to your preposterous, dishonest post sufficiently entertaining. Now STFU unless you want another beat-down.