Is Forbes's college rankings correct????

[annasdad]

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The USA has thousands of undergraduate programs. So how do you identify the “outstanding” ones (let alone the very good but not famous ones) without resorting to aids like college rankings

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<p>Apparently the director of admissions at Yale (which seems to do fairly well in most rankings, no?) considers it possible.</p>

<p>Perhaps he is just savvy enough to realize that rankings are useless because they have absolutely nothing to do with being outstanding or good, but rather that are based on prestige and on factors that have been shown by decades of research to have little or no bearing on the quality of the education available.</p>

<p>To quote further from Mr. Brenzel:</p>

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The formulas used to rank schools are based on factors that may be irrelevant to individual students. A composite score reflecting alumni giving rates, student-to-teacher ratios, median SAT scores, and assorted other data tells little about how the resources at a particular school fit the unique needs and interests of a particular student. The clarity that ranking systems seem to offer is a false one

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