For Dukies concerned about how their school stacks up, the Aug. 17 release of the U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges 2011” brings relatively good news.
Duke is tied for ninth place in the updated list of national universities offering doctoral degrees, a move up from last year when it was ranked 10th. Duke shares its new spot with the University of Chicago and Dartmouth College.
“It is always good to see Duke recognized among the very best universities in the country and also to be recognized for some areas in which we have put a large emphasis,” said Michael Schoenfeld, vice president for public affairs and government relations. “Any ranking, and there are many of them, represents only a snapshot of what the college experience is for any particular student.”
The magazine recognized Duke in four of eight “academic programs to look for.” It highlighted the University’s study abroad, service learning, writing in the disciplines and undergraduate research/creative projects programs. Duke received the same four distinctions in last year’s rankings.
Before last year—when the University had its lowest position in a decade—Duke had been ranked eighth for three years. Duke’s best ranking in the past decade was in 2003, when the University was ranked fourth.
Harvard, Princeton and Yale Universities were the three top colleges this year, respectively. Last year, Princeton and Harvard were tied for the top spot.
For some freshmen, Duke’s U.S. News ranking did not have any significant effect on matriculation. Instead, freshmen listed factors like the University’s large campus and sports programs that attracted them to Duke.
“I really didn’t know about [Duke] ranking wise but I knew it had a great reputation,” said freshman Katie Guidera. “It really was the campus itself that made me apply... it was really not the rankings at all. Obviously it’s a great side factor... but it’s really everything about the campus.”
U.S. News reports that it ranks national universities using data in 16 areas “related to academic excellence,” which are then weighted. The magazine largely focuses on University-released data, including undergraduate academic reputation, graduation and freshman retention, student selectivity and faculty resources.
U.S. News reported that it changed how it weighs certain criteria this year. “Graduation rate performance,” which the magazine defines as the difference between a school’s actual graduation rate and the one predicted by U.S. News based on test scores and other data. The rate increased nationally from 5 percent to 7.5 percent in the past year.
This change in calculations may be the reason for some of the major ranking shifts among the top 10 schools this year. Robert Morse, director of data research for U.S. News & World Report, told The Huffington Post that this change helped Columbia University move from eighth to fourth, and also caused California Institute of Technology and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology move from a fourth-place tie to a seventh-place tie. The magazine did not respond Friday to a request of how this change affected Duke.
Schoenfeld said it is hard to compare universities from year-to-year partially because of the way the magazine recalculates its formula every year.
“If you look at the rankings over the last 20 years, the top 10 universities have been in the top 10 over the years,” he said. “In large, complex institutions not that much changes year-to-year.”
Duke was also listed as the ninth school on the magazine’s “Best Values” list. The magazine reports that it calculates this list using three variables: ratio of quality to price, percentage of undergraduates receiving need-based scholarships or grants and average discount.
Duke also tied Dartmouth in another listing. In a new ranking, high school guidance counselors ranked Duke 11th, giving the University a 4.7 out of 5. This ranking was compiled by surveying counselors at the magazine’s list of “America’s Best High Schools” about which universities offer the best undergraduate education.
The Pratt School of Engineering also fared well in the updated rankings. Among colleges offering doctoral engineering degrees, Duke’s undergraduate engineering program moved from a tie at No. 26 to a tie at No. 22 in the updated rankings, according to a Duke news release.
Duke’s undergraduate biomedical engineering program was ranked second behind Johns Hopkins University.
Joanna Lichter contributed reporting.
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