UConn Back In Top 20 In U.S. News & World Report Ranking

[jostar1]

The University of Connecticut is back in the top 20 in this year's U.S. News & World Report college ranking, nudging its way back up to No. 19 among national public universities.

UConn President Susan Herbst, who frequently voices her determination to see UConn climb in the rankings, allows that the rankings are not "a perfect measure of university excellence."
"That said, this is without question the most impressive position on the U.S. News ranking that UConn has ever reached," Herbst said in written statement. "It confirms what many already know: that UConn is among the best universities in the nation, with a superb and growing academic reputation."


http://www.courant.com/news/education/hc-uconn-usnews-ranking-0910-20130909,0,3438880.story

 

[Fishy]

UConn is up to #57 in their national rankings.

Schools in their rear-view mirror....#62 (tie) Syracuse, #62 (tie) Maryland, #62 (tie) Pittsburgh, #69 Rutgers, #69 Texas A&M, #82 Texas Christian, #86 Colorado, #97 Missouri, #101 Nebraska, #121 Utah, #161 Louisville and #170 West Virginia.

Perfect.

We just keep winning, right?

 

[Willy Gee]

"Back" in the top 20? Were we ever in the top 20 in the past? Number 19 would not be the "most impressive position" if we had been there before.

 

[DSquiz]

"Back" in the top 20? Were we ever in the top 20 in the past? Number 19 would not be the "most impressive position" if we had been there before.

We tied for #19 in the past. We have it alone this year making it out most impressive ranking.

 

[Sea Goat]

UConn is up to #57 in their national rankings.

Schools in their rear-view mirror....#62 (tie) Syracuse, #62 (tie) Maryland, #62 (tie) Pittsburgh, #69 Rutgers, #69 Texas A&M, #82 Texas Christian, #86 Colorado, #97 Missouri, #101 Nebraska, #121 Utah, #161 Louisville and #170 West Virginia.

Perfect.

We just keep winning, right?

Yes!!!

More confirmation that we are damn good. (And I have been right about Syracuse.) Screw the ACC for taking the likes of Louisville for pure football purposes and shame on them!

We'll do just fine when this all shakes out - HERE, HERE TO THE B1G!

 

[thatguyed]

Can we chip in to get this on a billboard outside Delany's office window?

 

[upstater]

If you look at guidance counselor rankings, which are 22.5% of the overall score, UConn is being hurt by these people. #69 overall.

 

[SubbaBub]

If you look at guidance counselor rankings, which are 22.5% of the overall score, UConn is being hurt by these people. #69 overall.

AKA the same people who think the Olive Garden is a real italian restaurant.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

I agree that it is a great accomplishment for UConn and everyone should be proud. That said, there are a wide range of questions as to how US News puts those ranking together. I look at all of the college rankings to see how UConn is progressing, which is upward across the board. Also, AAU acceptance carriers as much if not more weight among the academic world that the US News ranking does.

With respect to realignment, academic prestige is a contributing factor to the selection process; but, not the key factor. The key factor is money, whether it be attendance, TV revenue, etc. The B1G has said such. The ACC has said such, depending on which factor hurts UConn the most at a given point in time.

A US news ranking is not going to generate money for the B1G nor the ACC. What generates money, for better or worse, is a football team that takes the game seriously, spends money on facilities and coaches, and wins (i.e. is competitive, beats the teams it should and plays hard against better teams), which generates TV and attendance money. A US News ranking does not outweigh getting beat by Towson at home.

 

[upstater]

AKA the same people who think the Olive Garden is a real italian restaurant.

After touting Buffalo as a decent city last week, someone told me that the Cheesecake Factory at the mall is the top grossing restaurant in the area.

 

[UConn Dan]

That's fantastic!

Cue Frank the Tank to come tell us we will still not get in the B1G because of the small size of our endowment, lower research spending, lower grad school enrollment, and not AAU.

 

[upstater]

I agree that it is a great accomplishment for UConn and everyone should be proud. That said, there are a wide range of questions as to how US News puts those ranking together. I look at all of the college rankings to see how UConn is progressing, which is upward across the board. Also, AAU acceptance carriers as much if not more weight among the academic world that the US News ranking does.

With respect to realignment, academic prestige is a contributing factor to the selection process; but, not the key factor. The key factor is money, whether it be attendance, TV revenue, etc. The B1G has said such. The ACC has said such, depending on which factor hurts UConn the most at a given point in time.

A US news ranking is not going to generate money for the B1G nor the ACC. What generates money, for better or worse, is a football team that takes the game seriously, spends money on facilities and coaches, and wins (i.e. is competitive, beats the teams it should and plays hard against better teams), which generates TV and attendance money. A US News ranking does not outweigh getting beat by Towson at home.

But then how do you explain UConn's exclusion when it generates plenty of money relative to the schools that got in?

 

[UConn9604]

Right now, we are engaged in making perception meet reality. Hearing people say, "wow, UConn is a much better school than it was when I attended" is like fingernails on the blackboard to me. UConn has always been an excellent school -- it took many basketball wins for politicians, and for many of our residents, to realize this. UConn 2000 wasn't an expansion, it was more of a game of catch-up to make for the gross negligence that allowed our campus to shrivel from about 1975 to about 1995. 21st Century UConn was a mere continuation of this process (literally and figuratively, it was an extension of the UConn 2000 statutes), but the new STEM initiative will really make us into a fundamentally different institution in 5-20 years.

Don't get me wrong, the rankings are important (despite what people say), but it's not like my diplomas stunk yesterday and improved today. But, the very best things each of us can do to drive these rankings higher are to consider donating (or increasing your donations) to the Foundation, to Athletics, to the Alumni Association or to any fund or scholarship of your choosing, and to help our students launch their careers upon (or even prior to) graduation.

Regardless, this is a good day. Now it's time to move us from 19 to 15 and then to 10, 5 and 1.

 

[uconndennis]

Hearing people say, "wow, UConn is a much better school than it was when I attended" is like fingernails on the blackboard to me. UConn has always been an excellent school --

I agree to an extent...I was there in the mid 90's and it was plenty good for me. However, my wife is an High School AP teacher in very good district in CT and the stories I hear about kids getting wait listed, branched or flat out rejected blows me away.

There is virtually no chance that I would get directly into Storrs these days, so in that regard its much improved

 

[DarthGrumpy]

But then how do you explain UConn's exclusion when it generates plenty of money relative to the schools that got in?

First, UConn is a ‘new’ football program and is not AAU status nor does UConn have a partner to join the B1G at this time. Second, the bloody knife in our back from BC and the bloody club used by Emmert with ‘Calhoun’ carved into that the NCAA based over our heads while scared off enough votes for Louisville and Pittsburgh to get into the ACC.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

While I do take the US News ranking with a large grain of salt, I did look at the Top 100 schools listed noted something off. UConn is the one of two state flagship universities in the US News top 100 that has FBS football that is not in a P5 conference and is one of 5 total in the top 100 not in a P5 conference (Rice #18, Tulane #52, UConn #57, Tulsa #89, UMass #91).

 

[upstater]

First, UConn is a ‘new’ football program and is not AAU status nor does UConn have a partner to join the B1G at this time. Second, the bloody knife in our back from BC and the bloody club used by Emmert with ‘Calhoun’ carved into that the NCAA based over our heads while scared off enough votes for Louisville and Pittsburgh to get into the ACC.

Ah, I see we agree!

 

[UConn9604]

I agree to an extent...I was there in the mid 90's and it was plenty good for me. However, my wife is an High School AP teacher in very good district in CT and the stories I hear about kids getting wait listed, branched or flat out rejected blows me away.

There is virtually no chance that I would get directly into Storrs these days, so in that regard its much improved

Oh, that's true. The door may have narrowed, but I think that's a function of restoring perception. The education behind the door has been strong for a very, very long time.

My wife has a cousin who got into Vanderbilt but was branched to Stamford. True story. Of course, as (some of) Fairfield County rolls, his parents were more willing to pony up Vanderbilt money than concede that their son couldn't get to Storrs as a freshman.

 

[upstater]

Oh, that's true. The door may have narrowed, but I think that's a function of restoring perception. The education behind the door has been strong for a very, very long time.

My wife has a cousin who got into Vanderbilt but was branched to Stamford. True story. Of course, as (some of) Fairfield County rolls, his parents were more willing to pony up Vanderbilt money than concede that their son couldn't get to Storrs as a freshman.

Who can blame them? That's a no brainer decision. It's the equivalent of a player walking on at UNC when he has a Duke offer with full scholarship.

 

[Gilligan]

If you look at the lists of the top public universities. I think UConn fits in well with the boys in the B1G. The bridge to the northeast can be complete with adding UConn to Penn St, Maryland, and Rut-u..

#4 Michigan
#8 Penn St
#11 Illinois
#11 Wisconsin
#16 Ohio St
#19 UCONN
#24 Purdue
#21 Maryland (newcomer)
#25 Rutgers (newcomer)
#29 Michigan St
#31 Indiana

 

[UConn9604]

Who can blame them? That's a no brainer decision. It's the equivalent of a player walking on at UNC when he has a Duke offer with full scholarship.

True, if money isn't a consideration -- but, knowing them, I think they were more afraid of having to admit at cocktail parties that their son couldn't get into Storrs proper than shelling out $50,000+ a year.

 

[UConnJim]

Some conference stats. Remember, UCONN is ranked #57.

Average school ranking:

ACC: 55 (dragged down by Louisville, #161)
Big 10: 57
Pac 12: 81
SEC: 97
Big 12: 112

AAC: 122 estimate. (Navy and Memphis aren't ranked so I think they would offset each other and I didn't include them.)

Last schools to change conferences:

Maryland 62
Pitt 62
Syracuse 62
Rutgers 69
TCU 82
Colorado 86
Missouri 97
Nebraska 101
Utah 121
Louisville 161
West Virginia 170



Bottom 10 Ranked P5 Schools:

West Virginia 170
Louisville 161
Texas Tech 161
Mississippi 150
Mississippi St. 142
Oklahoma St. 142
Oregon St. 142
Arizona St. 142
Kansas St. 135
LSU 135


Candidates for P5:

UCONN 57
BYU 62
Buffalo 109
Temple 121
Cincinnati 135
San Diego St. 152
Hawaii 158
USF 170
UCF 170
Nevada 181
Houston 190
Memphis Not rated.
Boise St. Not rated as a national university. (Rated #65 regional university in West.)

 

[DarthGrumpy]

As both conferences have private Universities, I have used the overall National Rankings from US News and have also added each conference’s affiliate school. The ACC is very top heavy; but, the B1G is better in the middle and end and I really mean the end with Louisville. Overall, the ACC’s average ranking is 55 and the B1G’s average ranking is 54. UConn as noted is #57 (Cincinnati is #135 while S Florida is #170 FYI)

ACC (15) - Duke #7, Notre Dame #18, Virginia #23, Wake Forest #23, UNC #30, BC #31, Georgia Tech #36, Miami #47, Clemson #62, Pittsburgh #62, Syracuse #62, Virginia Tech #69, Florida St #91, NC State #101, Louisville #161

B1G (15) - John Hopkins #12, Northwestern #12, Michigan #28, Penn St #37, Illinois #41, Wisconsin #41, Ohio St #52, Maryland #62, Purdue #68, Minnesota #69, Rutgers #69, Iowa #73, Michigan St #73, Indiana #75, Nebraska #101

What does this mean? Academically, UConn would be a good add to both, though the B1G is more concerned with AAU status that US News Rankings (several AAU schools fall outside of the top 100). And of course, on field athletic performance and TV screens count for a more.

 

[UConn9604]

ACC (15) - Duke #7, Notre Dame #18, Virginia #23, Wake Forest #23, UNC #30, BC #31, Georgia Tech #36, Miami #47, Clemson #62, Pittsburgh #62, Syracuse #62, Virginia Tech #69, Florida St #91, NC State #101, Louisville #161

B1G (15) - John Hopkins #12, Northwestern #12, Michigan #28, Penn St #37, Illinois #41, Wisconsin #41, Ohio St #52, Maryland #62, Purdue #68, Minnesota #69, Rutgers #69, Iowa #73, Michigan St #73, Indiana #75, Nebraska #101

Looks like the Big Ten's addition of Johns Hopkins (all academics, no football or hoops, no sense of urgency, plus lacrosse) was the alter ego of the ACC's addition of Louisville (no academics, all football and hoops, major sense of urgency, no lacrosse).

 

[CL82]

Right now, we are engaged in making perception meet reality. Hearing people say, "wow, UConn is a much better school than it was when I attended" is like fingernails on the blackboard to me. UConn has always been an excellent school -- it took many basketball wins for politicians, and for many of our residents, to realize this. UConn 2000 wasn't an expansion, it was more of a game of catch-up to make for the gross negligence that allowed our campus to shrivel from about 1975 to about 1995. 21st Century UConn was a mere continuation of this process (literally and figuratively, it was an extension of the UConn 2000 statutes), but the new STEM initiative will really make us into a fundamentally different institution in 5-20 years.

Don't get me wrong, the rankings are important (despite what people say), but it's not like my diplomas stunk yesterday and improved today. But, the very best things each of us can do to drive these rankings higher are to consider donating (or increasing your donations) to the Foundation, to Athletics, to the Alumni Association or to any fund or scholarship of your choosing, and to help our students launch their careers upon (or even prior to) graduation.

Regardless, this is a good day. Now it's time to move us from 19 to 15 and then to 10, 5 and 1.

Can't like this post enough. Nice job.