CHICAGO, Dec. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — StateUniversity.com, the leading website for college and university information, has issued the updated rankings for the Top 2,000 colleges and universities in the United States and released its 4th annual college ranking. The list is available on StateUniversity.com's website at http://www.stateuniversity.com/rank/score_rank.html. The StateUniversity.com ranking is based on statistical analysis and comparison of student/faculty ratio, student retention, test scores and other critical factors. The website also provides Top 500 ranking lists on data points including faculty salaries, SAT scores, student debt, top schools by state, best ranked public state universities, best private colleges and universities, top ranked community colleges, top vocational, technical and career colleges, and many other criteria.
A key distinction between StateUniversity.com and other college ranking organizations is that the StateUniversity.com system is based purely on a mathematical comparison of key statistics. Many other popular college ranking lists utilize peer review feedback, wherein colleges rate other colleges. Some critics have argued that peer review rankings may be subjective and perhaps even biased. The StateUniversity.com college rankings, first released in 2009, were designed to compare raw statistical data, without peer ratings or subjective adjustment such as the school's prestige/brand influencing the list.
The top 20 colleges and universities for 2012 are:
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Stanford University
- California Institute of Technology
- Duke University
- Pomona College
- Rice University
- Princeton University
- Wellesley College
- Cornell University
- Middlebury College
- Carleton College
- Williams College
- Amherst College
- Brown University
- Carnegie Mellon University
- University of Notre Dame
- Bowdoin College
- Vassar College
- Swarthmore College
- Harvard University
Newcomers to the top 20 include Bowdoin College, and Harvard University
Dominik Mazur, founder of StateUniversity.com and Net Industries LLC, said, "We are very pleased to present these new, updated college and university rankings for 2012. As today's students face a tight job market and rising tuition costs, Net Industries hopes that lists like these – together with the StateUniversity.com comprehensive school profiles – will provide a great resource to help students make an informed decision regarding their future college."
Mazur also cautions students to evaluate schools based on their personal values and preferences, and not only on numbers or rankings. "The Top 2,000 rankings – or any college ranking system, for that matter – should serve as just one of many facets that help students to choose a college. If these college rankings help students and their families explore new university options, or begin college discussions that they wouldn't have had otherwise, then StateUniversity.com has done its job."
StateUniversity.com's college rankings may be reprinted or reproduced, in whole or in part, under the terms of the Creative Commons 3.0 license, provided that proper attribution is given. Other Top 500 ranking lists for 2012 include total cost of attendance, student enrollment, and ACT scores.
About StateUniversity.com
Covering all U.S. institutions of higher learning, StateUniversity.com features the most complete collection of school statistics anywhere. The web site allows prospective students to compare schools, research degree programs and submit requests for application materials. StateUniversity.com also features school profiles, career advice on thousands of careers, scholarship and financial aid guides, a new "What's my Chance of Admission?" calculator, and content submitted by students and faculty.
About Net Ideas LLC
Founded in 2002, Net Ideas LLC publishes educational web sites and is the creator of JRank.org, the free Site Search Engine. In addition to StateUniversity.com, Net Industries' online properties include http://Encyclopedia.JRank.org, http://www.MusicianGuide.com, http://www.StrangeQuestions.com and http://MovieRevie.ws. In total, the web sites receive more than 10 million unique monthly visitors.
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