Rankings
We are in rankings season. It is a perplexing and
frustrating time, not because we have done poorly, but because there is so little
consistency between rankings, and there is little correlation between the
rankings in mainstream media and the quality of student experience.
Rankings based upon high endowment-per-student ratios and low
acceptance rates have led to an institutional cachet that is independent of what
happens to students while they are enrolled. Frankly, although our institutions
are quick to celebrate an ascendency in any national publication’s ratings, those
rankings are not particularly useful in making a good college choice.
The White House Scorecard was an attempt to focus on
outcomes. They have published median salaries of graduates 10 years after
matriculation, graduation rates, and average actual cost of attendance for
every higher-education institution. These are important considerations when
evaluating possible college choices, and Susquehanna performs very well in
these measures.
It is important to read those data with a sense of context.
Some institutions focus on preparing students for critically important and intrinsically
rewarding careers that are historically lower paying like school teachers and
social workers. Graduation rates are one of the most important measures of
success, but some institutions with lower graduation rates serve populations that
are high risk, or who begin degrees close to home before completing elsewhere.
One of the most meaningful U.S. News
measures is the difference between predicted and actual graduation rates,
because it provides a context for the data.
The measures I believe are particularly important for
families to consider when selecting a college are the percentage of graduates
who complete in 4 years, employment rates of graduates, and the availability of
high-impact practices including: study abroad, internships, and independent
research.
Outcomes matter. At Susquehanna: 99% of our graduates
complete in 4 years; our alumni have the highest employment rate of any
college or university in Pennsylvania, and we are 9th in the nation;
100% of our students have a study-away experience, and all our students
have access to internships and independent research; and back to the White
House Scorecard, our median alumni incomes are 53% higher than the
national average of college graduates.
