Universities Weblog

(Source: Haverford College)To some outsiders, admission to an elite college may seem like a crapshoot. Even straight-A students with dazzling SAT scores aren't guaranteed admission to the top schools. Who gets in? Is it simply random selection among a talented pool of qualified applicants?

It may as well be, according to one critic writing in the Chronicle of Higher Education. He claims that leaving such selection to chance—a lottery-type drawing of those deemed "good enough" for admission—would reduce the stress student face and eliminate much of the toil and preening colleges undergo.

Consider this, the crux of his argument:

There is a simple step that selective institutions can take that will sharply reduce competition and thus change the distorted adolescence that many of our most talented students now experience. All that is required is this: When Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and Swarthmore get their applications, they can scrutinize them — using the same high standards they currently use — and identify students good enough to be admitted. Let's assume that would cut the pool by half or two-thirds. Then the names of all the "good enough" applicants could be placed in a metaphorical hat, and the "winners" drawn at random. While high-school students might have to distort their lives to be the "best" to gain admission to Harvard, they won't have to distort their lives nearly so much to be "good enough." The only reason that would remain for participating in all those enrichment programs and attending high-powered pre-schools would be interest, not competitive advantage.

Further, while admissions people like to believe that they have the discernment to look at 8,000 wonderful applicants and pick, with high accuracy, the 1,600 "superwonderful" ones, there is a huge literature on decision making, much of it reviewed in a classic article in Science 15 years ago by Robyn M. Dawes, David Faust, and Paul E. Meehl, which makes clear that people in such positions are much more confident of their abilities than the data warrant. In other words, picking a fifth of the 8,000 at random might be just as good a way of producing a great class as the tortured scrutiny of folders that is the present practice.Is this system more or less fair than the existing one? The current system asks admissions professionals to make educated decisions, but those decisions can be arbitrary and capricious, or based on non-merit factors such as race and legacy status. The author's suggested model leaves more to chance and fate.

Let's think about it another way. Should top schools be populated by those deemed "good enough," and at what point will savvy students stop pushing themselves once they've figured out what "good enough" really means? I suppose if you're better than "good enough," you'd balk at a system that gives less-qualified students an equal chance. But if you're a marginal applicant, then this method would perhaps improve your chances of getting in.

Not to worry, though. The author's suggestion is merely an exercise to get us thinking about the perceived randomness of elite-college admissions. His model would never take hold.

(Source: Harvard University)Today's kids and their parents pursue the Holy Grail of admission to the "right" college with enough zeal to scare admissions officers, even at Harvard. Their advice? Time out or burn out.

Here's a snippet from an online essay:

College admissions officers, especially those who admitted the parents of today's applicants, have an unusual vantage point from which to observe changes from one generation to the next. Many of us are concerned that the pressures on today's students seem far more intense than those placed on previous generations. College admission—the chance to position oneself for "success" through the acquisition of the "right" college degree—looms large for increasing numbers of students. Particularly because selective colleges are perceived to be part of the problem, we want to do everything possible to help the students we enroll make the most of their opportunities, avoiding the much-reported "burnout" phenomenon that can keep them from reaching their full potential.

Of course, the quest for college admission is only one aspect of a much larger syndrome driving many students today. Stories about the latest twenty-something ".com" multimillionaires, the astronomical salaries for athletes and pop-music stars, and the often staggering compensation packages for CEOs only stimulate the frenzied search for the brass ring. More than ever, students (and their parents) seek to emulate those who win the "top prizes" and the accompanying disproportionate rewards.Instead, say Harvard officials, students should use summers to reflect and relax, concentrate less on mastering one or two talents, and take a "gap year" between high school and college. All familiar advice, to be certain, but a nice encapsulation of common stresses and remedies.

(Source: Columbia University)So now you've seen my complete ranking of the top ten universities in America. Again, I didn't consider only undergraduate programs in my evaluation; I included graduate and professional schools as well.

To recap, here's how they stack up:

1. Harvard2. Stanford3. Yale4. Columbia5. Penn6. California-Berkeley7. Chicago8. MIT9. Princeton10. DukeWhat do you think? How would you rank them? Who are your top ten? Drop me a line at mark@creative-weblogging.com and I'll post the results.

(Source: Bentley College)So you're thinking about joining the growing ranks of those pursuing an M.B.A. part-time or online. You'll earn the same degree, right? Sure. And gain the same career advantages? Sorry to say, no.

Consider this from the Wall Street Journal:

Part-time, online and executive M.B.A. programs may be growing in popularity, but the traditional full-time degree still rules with corporate recruiters.

In most corporate recruiters' hierarchy, the full-time degree would be on top, followed by the executive M.B.A., then the part-time program, and on the bottom, the online option.Not terribly encouraging news for those who don't have the option of attending full-time. At least be aware of the bias you'll encounter down the line.

(Source: Harvard University)Finally we've reached the mountaintop, the summit, the apex, the pinnacle of American higher education—numero uno on my list of best universities. Some of my choices may seem questionable, though I believe I've justified each decision. This choice, however, warrants no justification. It's number one on most lists, and certainly tops mine by a wide margin. Stumped? Didn't think so.

Let's get to it. The best university in America is…drum roll, please…

#1: HarvardMassive disclaimer part two: I'm a Harvard graduate—twice, actually. I earned my master's degree and doctorate in higher education there. So am I biased? Maybe. But who's going to argue with this ranking?

The oldest. The wealthiest. The most prestigious and best-known. It's a mythical, magical place whose name connotes power and privilege and academic excellence. For many Americans, Harvard remains the Holy Grail of higher education, the ultimate bastion of aristocracy and meritocracy.

Why? Let's count the ways. For starters, Harvard College skims off the best and brightest students from across the country and around the world. Sure, it's earned a reputation for treating undergrads with disinterest and even contempt, but that doesn't stop eager geniuses from applying. At the graduate level, it gets even better. The medical complex—including the schools and teaching hospitals—is unrivaled. The law school, while second on most lists to Yale, has shaped the American legal system more than any other school. Harvard Business School is an enterprise unto itself and still offers, I'd argue, the most valuable M.B.A. on the planet. The Graduate School of Education ranks first in its field, and the Kennedy School of Government sets the pace for policy studies.

Earn a Harvard Ph.D. and your academic career is off to a fast start. The departments of economics, English, government, chemistry and chemical biology, physics, and mathematics are especially strong.

But there's so much more to Harvard than academic excellence. The name itself carries tremendous weight in just about every industry. Alums always have that imprimatur emblazoned on their foreheads, and benefit from an amazing alumni network. More fundamentally, succeeding at Harvard—even getting in—empowers an individual with a sense of self-worth and self-confidence and makes any goal seem reachable. At Harvard you compete with the best from around the globe, so it becomes the New York City of higher education: If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere.

Harvard has always been and always will be the best university in America. It's not the best in every discipline, and it does have its warts. Sometimes its perch generates a certain complacency and arrogance that students and staff resent. Harvard assumes you should feel fortunate to be there, and in so many ways, it's right.

Other universities may offer a better undergraduate education, be better in science and engineering, feature a wider array of programs, employ faculty more dedicated to teaching and rely less heavily on graduate assistants. But none do as much as well as Harvard, and none can offer the same lifelong benefits of attending.

That's why it ranks first.

(Source: Stanford University)Our countdown of America's best universities is almost done. We've now arrived at number two, a relatively young institution that has made incredible strides in quality over the past couple of generations. Of course we're talking about…

#2: StanfordThe West Coast Ivy. Brains and tans. Nobel Prizes and palm trees. Stanford has it all. Its undergrads can get in and succeed anywhere, but they choose Stanford for its academic excellence, its reputed laid-back flavor, its gorgeous campus and nice weather, and, to some extent, its nationally-prominent athletic teams. At the graduate level, schools of law, medicine, business, engineering and education are phenomenal. Stanford Ph.D.s are in high demand, particularly those in computer science, psychology, economics, geology, political science, math, physics, anthropology and communications.

Add in Pac-10 sports featuring former luminaries such as Tiger Woods, Tom Watson, John Elway and John McEnroe, and you have a tradition most other elite institutions can't match.

Weaknesses? Uh, give me a minute. Let's see. Wait…nope, that's good too. Okay, I've got it. Some academic departments don't rank among the top five, and the great weather will distract you from your studies. Plus, they have those pesky earthquakes now and then. And the cost of living is high. And some of the athletes may have the student-athlete dichotomy backwards. I'm trying here….

The upshot? If you get accepted to Stanford, go, unless you can't bear the thought of leaving the East Coast or Midwest or South. Or if your ideal campus must be adorned with ivy, fall foliage and a blanket of snow from time to time.

Or if you get admitted to one other place. With all this going for it, Stanford clearly deserves the number two spot on my list. Only one university trumps it. And it probably always will. Stanford is fantastic, but it can't match my number one pick.

That's why it ranks second.

(Source: Yale University)Finally we've reached the Big Three in our countdown of America's best universities. But as you'll discover, it's not the same Big Three folks are used to seeing. In fact, my Big Two pairing parts from conventional wisdom. Enough suspense already. Let's meet Curly.

#3: YaleArguably the best undergraduate education in America. The best law school, bar none (yes, pun intended). A world-class medical school and teaching hospital. Probably the best drama program going. A divine divinity school. Ditto for schools of art and music. Enviable graduate programs in English, history, political science, economics, American studies and foreign languages. Yale oozes prestige, power, privilege and academic excellence. Seemingly every presidential candidate in recent memory has owned a degree from the place. Perhaps it's become a requirement.

Simply put, Yale has always ranked, formally and informally, among the world's elite institutions.

So why third? A few shortcomings to mention. Its business school, or school of management, is okay, but not stellar. Engineering has traditionally been weak. Some arts and sciences programs, notably sociology and astronomy, have been targeted for retrenchment. Yale also waters down its quality by offering terminal master's degree programs for those willing to pay full tuition. And then there's the problem of location—New Haven, a crime-ridden, ugly city that deters some top students from attending.

Again, we're nitpicking here, but we have to draw some distinctions among the top few places to justify the order. Yale still ranks near the top of the heap, but one competitor has bumped it down a notch and another remains unreachable.

That's why it ranks third.

(Source: Columbia University)So now we're down to the top four universities in America. Let's see who just missed the bronze.

#4: ColumbiaNew York City is the capital of the world, in many respects, so its best university has to rank among the elite, right? Well, actually, yes, it does.

That would be Columbia, of course. NYU may be nipping at its heels on some fronts, but Columbia still reigns supreme. Why? Top graduate and professional programs, for one. Its schools of law, medicine, business, journalism, international affairs, education (Teachers College) and public health all merit mention among the best. What's more, departments within arts and sciences are uniformly good. Economics, political science, history, English and sociology have always been stellar. Not surprisingly, the School of the Arts is also outstanding, given the concentration of such activity in the city and the school's ability to attract many of the best artists and practitioners.

At the undergraduate level, Columbia College, while small, has left an indelible mark on American higher education through its strong faculty and its commitment to a core curriculum, which has been modeled elsewhere. Undergrads can also enroll in the oddly-named Fu Foundation School of Engineering; the sister-school, Barnard; and the School of General Studies, which offers nontraditional students the opportunity to take "real" Columbia courses with "real" Columbia professors. Imagine that.

Weaknesses? Not many, but Columbia still loses skirmishes for faculty and student talent to those institutions ranking above it (and even to some below). Not everyone wants to be in New York. If you don't, then the university isn't for you. Crime persists, and it's not exactly the easiest or cheapest place to visit or live in. But if you love New York, or can at least manage it for a few years, then Columbia is your best bet for top academics, almost across the board.

Columbia's reputation as one of the world's premier intellectual hubs is well-deserved. It does, though, lag behind a few institutions in that respect—three, to be exact.

That's why it ranks fourth.

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(Source: Reuters)The devastation of Hurricane Katrina is only now being fully realized. Officials predict the death toll will surpass that of September 11.

Higher education did not escape the horrific storm. Campuses across the Gulf Coast are inoperable. Students are displaced, and in many cases are finding welcome hosts on campuses throughout the U.S. Loyola University in New Orleans is closed for the semester, while the neighboring University of New Orleans has relocated to Baton Rouge. Tulane has temporarily moved its operations to Houston.

Many months will pass before that region can resume some state of normalcy. Quite possibly, the City of New Orleans will never return to what it was.

In the meantime, Americans continue to support relief efforts. More than half a billion dollars has been donated thus far. To put that in perspective, consider this from the Chronicle of Philanthropy:

The pace of giving is unprecedented in recent American history. In the 10 days after September 11, Americans donated $239-million to charitable causes, and in the 9 days after the tsunamis hit, major American relief groups raised $163-million.

Still, the contributions do not yet come close to the total amount raised in the wake of those disasters. After the 2001 terrorist attacks charities raised more than $2.2-billion and U.S. charities have collected nearly $1.3-billion for the tsunamis.Here's hoping we surpass those totals. Please give to the Red Cross and help the victims of Katrina.

Want the real inside scoop on campus life at America's best colleges? Visit College Prowler, where you can find guides—written by students—to the Ivies, the Big 10 and women's colleges, among other schools. They offer 200 such guides, each for $14.95, and each offering first-hand looks at life on campus and in the classroom.

Also check out the site's own college rankings on topics such as academics, athletics, social life, housing, parking, technology, nightlife and even weather.

And if you're already in college, learn more about how you can help write a guide to your school.

Definitely good stuff here.