Winners & Losers in the 2026 College Rankings

Note that the bulk of the rankings criteria measures the high school performance of the previous year’s matriculating class. Almost none of what is utilized to determine a school’s ranking truly captures the type of education a student actually receives at a particular institution. In other words, there is nothing in the rankings about teaching quality, other than class size, and even that is not a real measure of teaching quality. At many of the elite universities at the top of the list, undergraduate students have little to no direct interaction with their professors. (So, why are they ranked so high?) Further, the rankings take no consideration of the types of internships and research opportunities that are offered…or how well a school’s graduates are performing in the real world.

Think about that.

The statistical measures that make up the rankings methodology offer little insight into what or how well students are doing beyond high school.

So, as I’ve said for many years, as excited as people get about their school’s ranking, I ask you: is that really the best way to determine whether a college is ‘good’?

Which brings me back to Tulane. Tulane was an excellent school for my son and for many of my students over the years. I don’t care that Tulane surged into the top 50 the last few years, or that they ‘fell back’ this year. Tulane offered my son professional opportunities to excel in his chosen field. Equally important, he took advantage of those opportunities and has reaped the benefits (he graduated in May with a job in his field waiting). For my son (and others whom I’ve counseled), Tulane was the perfect school – not because it was ‘the best ranked’ school they could ‘get into’ – but because it offered them the best academic and financial fit with the right type of campus life, networking opportunities AND degrees conferred. And when matched with the right educational institution, they soared. Which is true of all students: That match matters. Fit matters.

To illustrate my point, Tulane’s current ranking of 69 is tied with UConn, Brandeis, and University of Pittsburgh. These schools couldn’t be more different in terms of size, curriculum emphasized, social scene, cost of attendance, discounts offered…yet their ranking is the same. Can we determine whether these schools would be the right fit for your child based solely on rank? Absolutely not.

For me, and for most parents with whom I work, the goal of higher ed is to help our children succeed in life. And I think that’s why we’re collectively obsessed with the rankings – they put a number on perceived value. But that’s just it – perceived value — and I’d caution families against relying solely on any ranking when defining the value of a school. Wouldn’t it be more helpful to evaluate a school based on the progress that students like yours (with similar interests and aspirations) make from August of freshman year to May of senior year? Or to identify and rate student achievement six months to six years post graduation? Or to quantify the commitment to teaching and career development among the faculty and administration? Wouldn’t that better reveal the educational merit of a particular school?

That said, there is one oft-cited determinant of a student’s success in school, and it is this. Students who have access to (and take advantage of) professional opportunities while in school — i.e., quality internships, faculty research projects, career mentorship programs, professional certification options, etc. – have a professional edge on their peers who do not. In fact students who are pursuing a liberal arts education who do an internship while in college have the same statistical job opportunities as their STEM peers. By this measure, co-op schools that build career exploration into their curriculum — like lesser known Drexel in Philadelphia (where my daughter went) and Boston’s Northeastern (where we have a 100% admit rate for our students) — excel. This type of data, however, is not measured in the rankings algorithm, but it’s information we track — and it should be part of your calculus.

So what good are the US News rankings?
As a whole, the rankings offer a single place where data on schools can be collected. When researching colleges, students and families may find certain data points that they prioritize, and the rankings may provide this data. BUT to suggest that Tulane was a better school last year when it was 63 than it is now, or that the 17th ranked school is better for your child than the 27th ranked school is nonsense.

Do yourself and more importantly your child a favor and look at factors beyond rank when considering where to apply. When I speak in public I like to joke that the only college rankings with any real consequence are the College Football Playoff rankings. As senseless as that sounds, the CFP actually determines a real outcome, however flawed you might think it is, and whatever little consequence it has on broader society.

If you’re looking for better guidance on selecting colleges, admissions guidance that goes beyond the ‘rankings’ and helps your family select, apply to and receive scholarships from schools that fit your child’s unique objectives, then give me a call or send me an email to start the discussion. I look forward to hearing from you soon.