In my opinion, the U.S. News rankings are complete B.S. I will say, though, that at the UT law school they believe that the rankings are hugely important in terms of attracting students. Maybe the law administration and faculty are wrong, but that's what they think. Maybe it's different for undergrads, though.

(09-20-2021 11:09 AM)PaulJ Wrote:  I have dozens of examples for those students where a UT degree has severed them very well.

I hope you have more than dozens.

Any student can succeed from any school and yes rankings can be biased by reputation, $, and even numbers of graduates. The formula can be a mystery. I for example would NEVER hire an UM Civil Eng grad over a UToledo Civil Eng grad, decisions based upon rush hour traffic patterns. I mean, how hard is it to turn on a green light in order to clear the parking lot called Washtenaw Ave? Merge lanes into and out of strip malls people? Not brain surgery. I do respect the cheap parking at the hospital though.

(09-20-2021 03:40 PM)Lester Wrote:  In my opinion, the U.S. News rankings are complete B.S. I will say, though, that at the UT law school they believe that the rankings are hugely important in terms of attracting students. Maybe the law administration and faculty are wrong, but that's what they think. Maybe it's different for undergrads, though.

graduate program ratings and recruitment are different than undergraduate to an institution, in that case national rankings can be a factor for Law School or other graduate programs as they are specific to that school or program

(09-20-2021 04:30 PM)eastisbest Wrote:  

(09-20-2021 11:09 AM)PaulJ Wrote:  I have dozens of examples for those students where a UT degree has severed them very well.

I hope you have more than dozens.

Any student can succeed from any school and yes rankings can be biased by reputation, $, and even numbers of graduates. The formula can be a mystery. I for example would NEVER hire an UM Civil Eng grad over a UToledo Civil Eng grad, decisions based upon rush hour traffic patterns. I mean, how hard is it to turn on a green light in order to clear the parking lot called Washtenaw Ave? Merge lanes into and out of strip malls people? Not brain surgery. I do respect the cheap parking at the hospital though.

formula's really are not a mystery, it is more a factor of what criteria they use, how they are weighted and data/information used. US News and World Report is likely very accurate in terms of determining top 50 or top 100 (although order and rankings could be debated and often are), its just that when we are talking about difference between say 250 and 299 its not really a significant difference although some imply there is. Bottom line is that students looking at UT or our peers really are not influenced by US News and World Report but more basic fundamental (and relevant) factors such as cost, career opportunities, housing, facilities, class sizes, internships-these are the questions they ask when considering UT.