U.S. News college rankings: not the only way to judge schools

Washington Monthly’s annual college guide offers yet another approach to rankings – one based on how well higher education institutions are serving the nation – through social mobility, research production, and fostering public service.

Thirteen of the top 20 universities in Washington Monthly’s ranking are public, while all of the top 20 in the U.S. News ranking are private.

The website shows not only where schools rank, but how they did on each of the various factors measured.

The social-mobility scale highlights schools that produce graduation rates higher than would be expected based on the demographic background of their students. This year, the net price students pay (after grants are taken into account) was factored in as well, to reward schools that give the biggest bang for the buck.

Elizabeth City State University, a historically black institution in North Carolina, for instance, has an expected graduation rate of just 19 percent, yet 42 percent of its students graduate. “There’s a story going on there, and they do it at an average net price of about $1,400 for the academic year,” says Rachel Fishman, a policy analyst with the New America Foundation’s Education Policy Program, which collaborated on the rankings.

Washington Monthly’s top three liberal arts colleges are Bryn Mawr College, Swarthmore College, and Berea College (71st in U.S. News). The top three national universities are the University of California-San Diego, Texas A&M (58th in U.S. News), and Stanford.

3. Alumni Factor

The Alumni Factor rankings, based on surveys of alumni from more than 450 colleges and universities, score 177 top schools on 15 attributes, including overall happiness, value for the money, intellectual development, average net worth of graduates, and whether they would recommend the school to a friend.

The website offers a free seven-day trial to explore its offerings, and then charges $3.95 to $5.95 for various membership levels.

4. US Department of Education

While the US Department of Education is not exactly in the college rankings game, it, too, is trying to improve the level of information easily accessible to students comparing their options.

In June, for instance, it published its annual college costs lists which detail schools with the highest and lowest published sticker price, the highest and lowest net price, and where prices are rising the fastest.

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