Why Has College Admissions Become So Competitive?: Concerns About Rankings
The U.S. News rankings are very popular with the general public, particularly parents, and are a source of joy or frustration for colleges themselves, depending on a college’s ranking in a given year. The most important criticism of the rankings is that they are not based on any direct measures of educational quality, such as good teaching or student satisfaction. Educators readily acknowledge that educational quality and student satisfaction can be hard to assess and tricky to put into numbers, but there are ways to measure them directly.
For the last several years, the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) based at Indiana University has attempted to measure quality and satisfaction by asking students direct questions about their educational experiences and how they spend their time. U.S. News now reports some NSSE data in its “America’s Best Colleges” issue, although they are not counted in the calculation of the rankings. Unfortunately, many highly regarded colleges do not participate in NSSE, including most selective ones as we have defined them. And some colleges that do participate do not make the results public. Even though NSSE data are not used or reported as broadly as they might be, you should know about them, since they suggest important ways to assess educational quality. You can learn more about NSSE and see which colleges participate in it at www.nsse.iub.edu. It is recommended that you ask questions on your own when you research and visit colleges.
Representative Questions from the National Survey of Student Engagement 2008
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1. To what extent has your experience at this institution contributed to your knowledge, skills, and personal development in the following areas (rated from “very much” to “very little” along a four-point scale): a. Acquiring a broad general education b. Writing clearly and effectively c. Thinking critically and analytically d. Learning effectively on your own e. Understanding people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds 2. Overall, how would you evaluate the quality of academic advising you have received at your institution? 3. In your experience at your institution during the current school year, about how often have you done each of the following (rated from “very often” to “never” along a four-point scale): a. Asked questions in class or contributed to class discussion b. Worked on a paper or project that required integrating ideas or information from c. Discussed ideas about your readings or classes with faculty members outside of class 4. If you could start over again, would you go to the same institution you are now attending? (rated from “definitely yes” to “definitely no” along a four-point scale) Used with permission from Indiana University |
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