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<p>Notice that aside from Hopkins (which is a research beast) and Duke university (which is located in the Research Triangle) all of those universities are big name publics; Additionally notice how UCSD is also ahead of Stanford and Penn; other big name Privates (Harvard, Caltech MIT) aren’t even in the top 10. What’s most likely the case is that R&D is very specialized, and most universities don’t invest too heavily in it.</p>
<p>Also, although UCSD is “ranked higher,” this isn’t really a ranking as much as it is a measure of some criteria. (spending in R&D) Rankings, imo, generally include many criteria.</p>
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<p>I’ve criticized this ranking in the past. It says it focuses on ‘what really matters to students’ (whatever that means.) My main criticism of the ranking is that the ‘quality of life’ category accounts for 30% of the ranking. </p>
<p>Notice how UC Davis is also ranked above Chicago, Columbia, Cornell, Northwestern, WUSTL, and Emory. Aside from Cornell, these are all in big cities, which increases the cost of living, which accounts for 15% of the total ranking. Their other 15% are also laughable. Why on earth would any undergraduates be concerned with what the median income/age is of people in their town or city? Perhaps it’s important in a small town, but in a huge city like Los Angeles or New York? It’s most likely completely irrelevant.</p>
<p>But you did indeed find a ranking where UC Davis is ranked higher than UCLA. That’s good for something, i guess…</p>