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The status ladder
Memorial Hall at Harvard College American college and university faculty, staff,
alumni, students, and applicants monitor rankings produced by magazines such as
U.S. News and World Report, Academic Ranking of World Universities, test
preparation services such as The Princeton Review or another university itself
such as the Top American Research Universities by the University of Florida's
The Center. These rankings are based on factors like brand recognition,
selectivity in admissions, generosity of alumni donors, and volume of faculty
research.55 US universities are listed in the top 200 in the world in the THES -
QS World University Rankings .
In terms of brand recognition, the United States' best known university is
Harvard. Seemingly, Harvard alumni often gain prominence in American business,
education, and society; for this reason, it has become entrenched in popular
mind as America's 'top' school. Various Hollywood movies depict Harvard as the
ultimate example of the academic "ivory tower," (e.g., Legally Blonde, Soul Man,
The Paper Chase, etc).
In the popular mind, approximately twenty-five institutions compose the "top
tier" of American higher learning. However, this "ladder" is not absolute. Most
would cite the eight universities that compose the Ivy League and a small number
of elite, private research universities (e.g. (alphabetical order), Caltech,
Duke, Johns Hopkins, MIT, NYU, Northwestern, Stanford, University of Chicago,
Vanderbilt etc.)
A small percentage of students who apply to these Ivy League schools gain
admission. Many Americans would also cite the "Little Ivies," a handful of elite
liberal arts colleges known for their high-quality instruction. These include
(alphabetical order) Amherst, Swarthmore, Williams, Wesleyan, etc. Others would
cite all-female institutions such as Smith and Wellesley, former members of the
"Seven Sisters."
This ladder also includes top public universities (sometimes referred to as
"Public Ivies"), such as (alphabetical order) University of California,
Berkeley, UCLA, University of Michigan, University of Virginia and University of
Washington. These universities actually perform better than various private
universities in many measurements of graduate education and research quality.
Among engineering and medical schools, Ivy League universities are outranked by
multiple public and other private universities.
Students walk in front of the Perkins Library at Duke University.Each state in
the United States maintains its own public university system, which is always
non-profit. The State University of New York and the California State University
are the largest public higher education systems in the United States; SUNY is
the largest system that includes community colleges, while CSU is the largest
without. Most areas also have private institutions which may be for-profit or
non-profit. Unlike many other nations, there are no public universities at the
national level outside of the military service academies. Many states have two
separate state university systems. The faculty of the more prestigious system
are expected to conduct advanced cutting-edge research in addition to teaching
(the naming convention usually runs "University of ___" for the upper tier, e.g.
the University of California), while the less prestigious is focused on quality
of teaching and producing the next generation of teachers (usually named "___
State University," e.g., California State University). The second-tier
university systems are often the descendants of 19th-century normal schools.
Prospective students applying to attend one of the five military academies
require, with limited exceptions, nomination by a member of Congress. Like
acceptance to "top tier" universities, competition for these limited nominations
is intense and must be accompanied by superior scholastic achievement and
evidence of "leadership potential."
Suzzallo Library at University of WashingtonAside from these aforementioned
schools, academic reputations vary widely among the 'middle-tier' of American
schools, (and even among academic departments within each of these schools.)
Most public and private institutions fall into this 'middle' range. Some
institutions feature honors colleges or other rigorous programs that challenge
academically exceptional students, who might otherwise attend a 'top-tier'
college. Aware of the status attached to the perception of the college that they
attend, students often apply to a range of schools. Some apply to a relatively
prestigious school with a low acceptance rate, gambling on the chance of
acceptance, and also apply to a "safety school," to which they will certainly
gain admission.
Low status institutions include community colleges. These are primarily two-year
public institutions, which individual states usually require to accept all local
residents who seek admission, and offer associate's degrees or vocational
certificate programs. Many community colleges have relationships with four-year
state universities and colleges or even private universities which enable their
students to transfer relatively smoothly to these universities for a four-year
degree after completing a two-year program at the community college.
Regardless of perceived prestige, many institutions feature (at least one)
distinguished academic department, and most Americans attend one of the 2,400
four-year colleges and universities or 1,700 two-year colleges not included
among the twenty-five or so 'top-tier' institutions. For this reason (among
others,) America's higher education status ladder remains highly controversial,
and certainly not beyond reproach. For example, prestigious Reed College
famously refuses to participate in institutional rankings, insisting that one
cannot quantify the qualitative. Similarly, Bard College president Leon Botstein
said of U.S. News' annual rankings; "it is the most successful journalistic scam
I have seen in my entire adult lifetime -- corrupt, intellectually bankrupt and
revolting."
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