U.S. News 2021 Rankings: UR @ #22

[SFspidur]

Highest ranking ever, edging out the #23 ranking in 2018 and 2020, although we're actually tied at #22 with Barnard and Bates.

2021: 22
2020: 23
2019: 25
2018: 23
2017: 27
2016: 32
2015: 30
2014: 25
2013: 28
2012: 27
2011: 32
2010: 30
2009: 33
2008: 40
2007: 34
2006: 34

University of Richmond Earns Highest Ranking Ever From U.S. News & World Report at #22 for National Liberal Arts Colleges

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges 2021 guide ranks the University of Richmond #22 overall among national liberal arts colleges. This ranking is UR’s highest from U.S. News to date.

news.richmond.edu

 

[SFspidur]

UR held steady at #22 in the 2022 rankings released today, tying with the Air Force Academy and Vassar.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/us-news-ranks-best-colleges

UR Ranks in Top 25 for Liberal Arts and Best Value by U.S. News & World Report; Undergraduate Business Jumps More Than 10 spots

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges 2022 guide has ranked the University of Richmond #22 overall among national liberal arts colleges for the second year in a row.

news.richmond.edu

 

[Mo 2.0]

I remember my dad got a subscription to US News & World Report when i was a kid, 30+ years ago. They only seem to get any fanfare anymore as relates to these "rankings". Interesting business model.

 

[Marley13]

My dad got Time and Newsweek.

 

[Gallipoli]

My dad got Time and Newsweek.

My dad threw out my newspapers, my magazines, and my sisters. But he kept me and my dog.

 

[ChoppinBroccoli]

My dad threw out my newspapers, my magazines, and my sisters. But he kept me and my dog.

Was he a country singer?

 

[spider fan]

Was he a country singer?

If he was a country singer you can play the record backwards and you will get your sisters, newspapers and magazines back.
Totally different note - props to SF for bringing back a thread from a year earlier almost to the day!

 

[Mo 2.0]

WSJ ranked UR #63 among all Colleges and Universities today.

 

[SFspidur]

Well, that's one way to move into the top 20...UR is in a six-way tie for 18th this year with Barnard, Colgate, Haverford, Air Force, and Wesleyan.

University of Richmond Moves Into Top 20 in Latest U.S. News Rankings

U.S. News & World Report has ranked the University of Richmond #18 overall among national liberal arts colleges. This ranking is UR’s highest from U.S. News.

news.richmond.edu

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges?_sort=rank&_sortDirection=asc

 

[Wood Hall]

Read a lot on the alumni Facebook page how the re-naming controversy was gonna kill annual giving, reduce the # of applicants and generally hurt our academic reputation.

As with so much in life, much hand-wringing about nothing.

 

[KE Spider]

This is nothing more than a Beauty Contest among a closeted group who suffer from group think. Says little about the quality of education received.

Was a day I placed stock in it. Now, I am dubious it means much of anything other than chest thumping.

 

[Wood Hall]

Read a lot on the alumni Facebook page how the re-naming controversy was gonna kill annual giving, reduce the # of applicants and generally hurt our academic reputation.

As with so much in life, much hand-wringing about nothing.

And I thought this was positive news we could all be happy about. How naive of me.

 

[KE Spider]

Not unhappy. Who would not want to ranked higher than lower? Not the point. In the grand scheme of things, the ranking is nothing more than described in Post 11, a beauty contest among a closeted group. Says little about the quality of education received.

 

[Wood Hall]

Well I guess if it's nothing more than a beauty contest, I'd rather be lumped in with the winners than the losers.

 

[KE Spider]

Said the same in post 13. No?

 

[fan2011]

This is nothing more than a Beauty Contest among a closeted group who suffer from group think. Says little about the quality of education received.

Was a day I placed stock in it. Now, I am dubious it means much of anything other than chest thumping.

While these rankings are flawed and might not mean much to you, they are still wildly popular for most people who are applying to colleges and their families. Higher rankings in US news and World Report is basically the best advertising a school can get.

 

[SFspidur]

U.S. News updated their methodology this year, throwing out some criteria like class sizes, alumni giving rates, and class ranking, while adding some emphasis on retention and performance of first-generation students and Pell Grant recipients.

UR dropped to a tie at #25 with Colby, down slightly from its 6-way tie at #18 last year.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges

 

[KE Spider]

No more than a beauty contest among the group think education crowd.

To use as a barometer for where your child will receive a challenging education, these surveys are of very limited use.

 

[spiderman]

U.S. News updated their methodology this year, throwing out some criteria like class sizes, alumni giving rates, and class ranking, while adding some emphasis on retention and performance of first-generation students and Pell Grant recipients.

UR dropped to a tie at #25 with Colby, down slightly from its 6-way tie at #18 last year.

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges

I get that it's hard to develop a formula to rank colleges, but I don't see how the performance of first-generation students and Pell Grant recipients is any indication of the quality of your 4 year education.

 

[SFspidur]

I think it can be relevant. Students from wealthy, educated backgrounds are likely to thrive in most environments. How well typically disadvantaged students end up doing seems like it could be a decent indicator of the education and support being provided by the school. It obviously shouldn't be the sole factor (and it isn't by any means), but I can see looking at it.

Some of the changes also tie into the quality and amount of data available. Factors like alumni giving rate and class size were removed from the formula because they aren't collected by the Department of Education and so the reporting by the schools isn't universal. And class rank has been dropped by so many high schools that the data simply isn't there anymore.

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/how-us-news-calculated-the-rankings