UConn beats out Brown, NYU ranks in top 50 on Wall Street Journal's 'Best Colleges in the U.S.' list

[Palatine]

Didn't want to bury this in the "Alumni Stuff Forum." I believe it has an important effect on the recruitment of both athletes and general students. Besides it is an very good piece of news for the university as a whole and this forum has many more readers.

UConn tops Brown, NYU on WSJ's 'Best Colleges in the U.S.' list

University of Connecticut ranks number 46 on the Wall Street Journal's list of 2024 Best Colleges in the U.S., jumping more than 50 spots and eclipsing Brown.

www.newstimes.com

 

[husky429]

Mentions a change in their methodology... anyone know what it is?

 

[HooperScooper]

Mentions a change in their methodology... anyone know what it is?

More emphasis on graduation rates and how much money you make graduating from the school.

 

[Chuck]

Mentions a change in their methodology... anyone know what it is?

Looks like the old US News law school rankings. "The biggest factor in determining the outcome was a statistical model used to project the median salary for graduates. Schools whose graduates were projected to earn more money than graduates from comparable institutions ranked higher. Other factors in the student outcomes were graduation rate and how long it would take students to pay off the net cost of their education, including room and board."

I'm not saying that isn't a good methodology, and this is the Wall Street Journal. But, it's going to favor schools with big business / stem programs in high wage areas.

 

[husky429]

FWIW... Other schools in CT:

#3 Yale
#74 Wesleyan
#124 Fairfield
#187 Quinnipiac
#191 Trinity
#225 Conn College
#263 Sacred Heart
#283 U Hart

Yeah, these rankings seem a little out there. But I'm not complaining about good PR for UConn.

 

[How Sway?!]

I'm all for UConn getting the respect it deserves, but there's no way we are a better school than Cal Berkeley. Arizona State is also ranked ahead of UCLA, which is, uh, a choice.

 

[Chuck]

I'm all for UConn getting the respect it deserves, but there's no way we are a better school than Cal Berkeley. Arizona State is also ranked ahead of UCLA, which is, uh, a choice.

The US News rankings may get flipped as well. They significantly changed their methodology, but differently than WSJ. Apparently, their 2024 rankings will no longer factor in alumni giving, faculty with highest degrees, class size and high school standing of entering class. They will now include "success in graduating students from different backgrounds" which could be up to 16% of the formula. I'd think this could be a hit to some private schools.

I realize that it's impossible to come up with a legitimate ranking, but I'd think highly credentialled professors, small class sizes and high achieving freshman would be good metrics.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Looks like the old US News law school rankings. "The biggest factor in determining the outcome was a statistical model used to project the median salary for graduates. Schools whose graduates were projected to earn more money than graduates from comparable institutions ranked higher. Other factors in the student outcomes were graduation rate and how long it would take students to pay off the net cost of their education, including room and board."

I'm not saying that isn't a good methodology, and this is the Wall Street Journal. But, it's going to favor schools with big business / stem programs in high wage areas.

It might be an overcorrection, but something had to counter the silly USNWR rankings. Those were easily manipulated and encouraged the wrong things. Class sizes may matter to some extent, but class sizes are generally large at Cambridge and Oxford too. The emphasis on outcomes is important. Too many people who can't afford to attend certain more prestigious schools are going deep in debt to do so. There should be a focus on practical outcome vs cost of attendance. But comparing MIT to a liberal arts school isn't really fair.

I am a bit surprised UConn did so well. It's outrageously expensive for a public school. Not at all surprised by Babson and Claremont-McKenna.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

Looks like the old US News law school rankings. "The biggest factor in determining the outcome was a statistical model used to project the median salary for graduates. Schools whose graduates were projected to earn more money than graduates from comparable institutions ranked higher. Other factors in the student outcomes were graduation rate and how long it would take students to pay off the net cost of their education, including room and board."

I'm not saying that isn't a good methodology, and this is the Wall Street Journal. But, it's going to favor schools with big business / stem programs in high wage areas.

I think post college earnings is probably the best metric to use. I could see maybe using an average wage - income per area conversion, but otherwise, earnings and the ability to pay off debt are much better stats than some others i've seen for these lists.

I think a school that has larger STEM/Bus programs, and more students receiving degrees in those programs, and in turn earning more future money, has greater value than a school that graduates students in lower earning fields.

my 0.02

 

[uconngb]

Great to see UConn in the top 50, but any list that has UVA at 84 and Johns Hopkins at 99 is a bit dubious

 

[Rocktheworld]

Other factors in the student outcomes were graduation rate and how long it would take students to pay off the net cost of their education, including room and board."

I'm not saying that isn't a good methodology, and this is the Wall Street Journal. But, it's going to favor schools with big business / stem programs in high wage areas.

Ahh well that makes sense too lol

Obviously a public state school in the middle of nowhere is going to get a boost in rankings compared to a private school in New York

 

[upstater]

The post college metric of salaries is, well, not a very well-researched statistic.

The recent surveys of attitudes toward college in the Chronicle of Higher Ed. show that we're at a place now (because of the extremely high cost borne by parents) that we can't construct proper assessments of the institutions because what should be our national priorities aren't aligned with our investments. We're measuring things that have little to no relevance for the average potential college student.

I still say the work the Carnegie Foundation does assessing individual departments in the most clarifying work out there, but it's only available at major libraries and such, and it requires some work going through the data. Same is true of DOE data sets.

 

[GotNets?]

Lots of good comments in here on the criteria… UConn should definitely show well if salary upon graduation is a big factor.

If I recall correctly, it typically takes good liberal arts grads about 10 years before their earnings outstrip public / larger schools. That’s a hard road if every dollar counts.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Lots of good comments in here on the criteria… UConn should definitely show well if salary upon graduation is a big factor.

If I recall correctly, it typically takes good liberal arts grads about 10 years before their earnings outstrip public / larger schools. That’s a hard road if every dollar counts.

I mean yeah when you’re paying a ton of money for a degree from Elon vs doing basically the same education at a public state school, I can see that delaying things a lot. Why people still do that, I do not know. If you’re going to just do liberal arts, I don’t know what you’re getting at some private school that you can’t get at a good public like UConn.

Unless you’re just dying to be on a tiny campus, which is the case for some people

 

[CL82]

They will now include "success in graduating students from different backgrounds" which could be up to 16% of the formula. I'd think this could be a hit to some private schools.

That should dramatically help Connecticut's ranking.

 

[husky429]

I think a school that has larger STEM/Bus programs, and more students receiving degrees in those programs, and in turn earning more future money, has greater value than a school that graduates students in lower earning fields.

Comparing a tech-heavy school to a liberal arts school is silly. It doesn't mean the SCHOOL is a better value; it means the MAJOR is a better value. A history of interpretive dance degree from Yale is still a history of interpretive dance degree.

What would be more helpful is comparing majors across institutions (even though it will never happen). What is the value of a CS degree at Wesleyan vs. UConn vs. MIT? Biology? English? That is a much more important conversation.

 

[Waquoit]

Sounds like the eye-test and past rep still counts for a lot here.

 

[HuskyHawk]

I mean yeah when you’re paying a ton of money for a degree from Elon vs doing basically the same education at a public state school, I can see that delaying things a lot. Why people still do that, I do not know. If you’re going to just do liberal arts, I don’t know what you’re getting at some private school that you can’t get at a good public like UConn.

Unless you’re just dying to be on a tiny campus, which is the case for some people

In some cases, what you are getting is admission to Harvard Law or Yale Law etc. The elite graduate programs in law, medicine, and to a lesser extent MBAs, recruits heavily from top students at those highly rated liberal arts schools. UConn can't touch Williams for getting you into Princeton Law.

But if that's not your goal, then it's not a great choice for anybody who cares about cost. Some don't care about cost, and to those richer folks, the prestige matters. You saw what some celeb parents did to get kids into top schools. But even UConn is probably too expensive if you're an education major or a nursing student. Job prospects are barely impacted by the school.

We do a crappy job of providing HS kids with accurate information about what schools make sense based on location, course of study and financial factors.

 

[Hoophound]

Where did we come in on the public university list? I’d love to see that. I know UF was #1.

 

[uconnfan68]

And USF just got invited to the AAU.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Three weeks ago, I went on a tour of UConn with my grand-niece and her friend. Our guide was a rising junior civil engineering major. She told us that engineering students were put on academic probation and placed in a student academic support program if your GPA fell below 3.5. That and graduating in top 10 or 15% is magna cum laude stuff at UConn. The school has 98% placement after graduation with the rest going to grad school. I forgot to ask how many switch majors or transfer out...The grad placement was the big reason she came here from Maryland along with the many diverse clubs the university sponsors.

 

[Punkbo]

Anyone who chooses a university based on a media ranking is a complete idiot.

 

[upstater]

In some cases, what you are getting is admission to Harvard Law or Yale Law etc. The elite graduate programs in law, medicine, and to a lesser extent MBAs, recruits heavily from top students at those highly rated liberal arts schools. UConn can't touch Williams for getting you into Princeton Law.

But if that's not your goal, then it's not a great choice for anybody who cares about cost. Some don't care about cost, and to those richer folks, the prestige matters. You saw what some celeb parents did to get kids into top schools. But even UConn is probably too expensive if you're an education major or a nursing student. Job prospects are barely impacted by the school.

We do a crappy job of providing HS kids with accurate information about what schools make sense based on location, course of study and financial factors.

But again, this is all a consequence of it costing too much in the 1st place. It's not what previous generations encountered. They had much more freedom in choosing their specialty because the emphasis on investment return was different.

Very few people win with the current dynamic and the few who do remind of what used to go on in England a century ago at "finishing schools."

I listen to people craft talks all day long about how the course of study correlates to cost and future employment, and it is one of the most unconvincing things you'll ever hear. This is one of the reasons why admissions consultants, guidance counselors, and campus tour people avoid discussions of departmental strengths like the plague. They can tell you who has the best Kosher or Korean food, they'll tell you all about the social life, but they avoid those key questions (which I've heard astute parents ask with hardly ever a good reply).

 

[Chuck]

In some cases, what you are getting is admission to Harvard Law or Yale Law etc. The elite graduate programs in law, medicine, and to a lesser extent MBAs, recruits heavily from top students at those highly rated liberal arts schools. UConn can't touch Williams for getting you into Princeton Law.

But if that's not your goal, then it's not a great choice for anybody who cares about cost. Some don't care about cost, and to those richer folks, the prestige matters. You saw what some celeb parents did to get kids into top schools. But even UConn is probably too expensive if you're an education major or a nursing student. Job prospects are barely impacted by the school.

We do a crappy job of providing HS kids with accurate information about what schools make sense based on location, course of study and financial factors.

First, there is no Princeton Law. But I'm only being a jerk and I understand your point. I had a classmate in law school that bragged about getting into Princeton Law. Nobody took him seriously after that.

Interesting point re grad school vs. job. You're right (or so I've heard) about grad schools, but it's a metric that is hard to find. You can absolutely get into an elite grad program from a UConn, but the grad schools also have a good understanding about the quality of an undergrad education and the person that may have gone to that school. So, you can be middle of the class at Amherst and get into a grad program that would require you to be towards the top of your UConn class. They aren't using US News.

Re jobs, however, as much as we want to crap on rankings and reputation, I think it DOES matter when looking for a job out of undergrad. We give too much credit to HR people... or just people involved at hiring in general. They don't always know everything about every school. They'll know local schools, schools where they've had success with hirings and schools they've heard of. And they'll look at US News or others for their rankings. So, we can mock the rankings, but I believe they do matter (even if they shouldn't).

 

[Palatine]

Amazing the amount of negativity that this thread has produced.

It reminds me of an old joke. Two New Englanders met each other on the street. One said, "Beautiful weather." The other replied, "Finally."

 

[upstater]

First, there is no Princeton Law. But I'm only being a jerk and I understand your point. I had a classmate in law school that bragged about getting into Princeton Law. Nobody took him seriously after that.

Interesting point re grad school vs. job. You're right (or so I've heard) about grad schools, but it's a metric that is hard to find. You can absolutely get into an elite grad program from a UConn, but the grad schools also have a good understanding about the quality of an undergrad education and the person that may have gone to that school. So, you can be middle of the class at Amherst and get into a grad program that would require you to be towards the top of your UConn class. They aren't using US News.

Re jobs, however, as much as we want to crap on rankings and reputation, I think it DOES matter when looking for a job out of undergrad. We give too much credit to HR people... or just people involved at hiring in general. They don't always know everything about every school. They'll know local schools, schools where they've had success with hirings and schools they've heard of. And they'll look at US News or others for their rankings. So, we can mock the rankings, but I believe they do matter (even if they shouldn't).

Good post Chuck. As for grad school, the professional schools (Business, Law, etc.) may indeed admit students that way.

But in the sciences and humanities, it's much easier doing admissions, since faculty are doing the admitting, and not admissions professionals; so they'll look at the actual work you produced as an undergrad. Projects, research, etc. It's pretty clear to see who is prepared. Almost nothing else matters, not GREs, not subject tests, and not grades (unless they are bad). These decisions are clear cut and not at all mysterious.

 

[Nostical]

Why are we burying the lead? The New Wall Street Journal College rankings are eye opening. The WSJ, not some promotional rag, ranked every college on a uniform list of criteria and the top five blue bloods were predictable.
Princeton 1
MIT 2
Yale 3
Stanford 4
Columbia 5
But now let’s look at the rankings of the schools on our football schedule. There were some surprises (to me).
Duke 16
FIU 29
BC 45
UConn 46
Rice 64
NC St 106
USF 151
JMU 152
UMass 190
Tenn 193
Sacred Heart 263
Utah St 293
Georgia State 369

Would any of you have predicted FIU being that high? UConn is in a great spot but I wonder how many folks out there—in media or otherwise—might have the same surprised reaction to us being where we are,— equal to BC and ahead of Rice—-as I had to FIU. Say what you want, but I’d lumped FIU in with Utah St, Ga St. and JMU. Not any more.
Let’s beat them on the field but I have a new respect for the school. And that’s a good thing.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Why are we burying the lead? The New Wall Street Journal College rankings are eye opening. The WSJ, not some promotional rag, ranked every college on a uniform list of criteria and the top five blue bloods were predictable.
Princeton 1
MIT 2
Yale 3
Stanford 4
Columbia 5
But now let’s look at the rankings of the schools on our football schedule. There were some surprises (to me).
Duke 16
FIU 29
BC 45
UConn 46
Rice 64
NC St 106
USF 151
JMU 152
UMass 190
Tenn 193
Sacred Heart 263
Utah St 293
Georgia State 369

Would any of you have predicted FIU being that high? UConn is in a great spot but I wonder how many folks out there—in media or otherwise—might have the same surprised reaction to us being where we are,— equal to BC and ahead of Rice—-as I had to FIU. Say what you want, but I’d lumped FIU in with Utah St, Ga St. and JMU. Not any more.
Let’s beat them on the field but I have a new respect for the school. And that’s a good thing.

Look, these rankings aren't any more correct than any other ones. Just different. FIU is massive, like Arizona State, which also scored high. It's the only public in Miami-Dade county. All the Florida public schools scored high. They aren't expensive and kids who come out of them have generally good outcomes, in part because they are in the most booming state in the country. FIU tuition is under $7k in state. Many of the students live at home. So it's truly affordable.

Really surprised by Tennessee though, it's a good school in another state that is growing.

 

[AreBee1969]

UConn has also moved up to the #9 spot for public universities as rated by the WSJ.

The 10 best public colleges and universities in the U.S.—none are in California

Private colleges and universities take up many of the tops slots in Wall Street Journal's latest national ranking. These are the best-ranked public schools.

www.cnbc.com

 

[Chuck]

The Wall Street Journal 2025 rankings are out. UConn's ranking, along with a bunch of other schools, changed dramatically. I get changing criteria periodically to try to make the rankings more "accurate." But, I'm not sure if the WSJ even changed their measurements this year. UConn went from #46 and the #9 public school to #99 and the #41 public school (behind URI in New England). I'm not sure how anyone would find such annual swings helpful. I'm glad my kids are done with the college decision process.