What if University Ranking Tables are Students?

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5 min readFeb 22, 2019

Rankings are a convenient way to get to know, and to judge, universities (and colleges). They provide an easy way for students to form perspectives about an institution, an otherwise subjective task.

A few (less than common) questions about the ranking tables:

Are rankings objective?

Many people think that the problem is with ranking tables is exactly their strength. They strip away subjectivity. This is true to a certain extent. From a student’s perspective, a good university is good for _you_. All subjective, all personal. It does not matter if a university is not known to many — if it prepares you to be a great scholar, entrepreneur, or member of the workforce, it is a good university for you.

Just one thing:

If the ranking tables are objective, why is my dream school ranked higher in one ranking and lower than another?

Good question. Odd things happen. Here’s an example:

Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Emory University in Georgia is ranked #21 in National Universities 2019 Ranking by U.S. News, 2 rankings ahead of University of California at Berkeley. However, the institution is placed in the #101–150 ranges in Shanghai ARWU, where Cal is found on the #4. In Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking 2019, Emory University is found on the 84th spot, while Cal is on the 15th.

Another example:

Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada is ranked 5th in the Canadian ranking in the Medical/Doctoral Category. Just under Queen’s is the University of Alberta, sitting on the 6th spot. in US News Global University Ranking 2019, another picture emerges: University of Alberta on the 132th spot, while Queen’s is found on the 251–300 range. On the ARWU? Queen’s on the 201–300, and UAlberta on 101–150.

Why?

Ranking tables are objective in that they do not, or at least try not to, favour one institution over another. However, just like how students do not all like the same things (except maybe free food), ranking tables also have different tastes. In other words, different ranking tables care about different things.

So, what if ranking tables are students?

US News Education’s Global Universities Ranking is one of the most watched annual university leagues. The Global Universities Ranking was first published in 2014, and quickly expanded to categories such as Universities in Latin American and Universities in Europe, and even high schools in the United States. The ranking considers citations, research and publications.

The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) was first published by Shanghai JiaoTong University in 2003 as the first global university ranking with multifarious ranking criteria. The definition of students winning prizes as the sole Quality of Education measure has received scrutiny, but it remains one of the largest and most objective rankings around.

The Times Higher Education World Universities Ranking strives to be the only global university ranking that ranks institutions based on their 4 core mission: research, teaching, knowledge transfer and international perspectives. Research component occupies roughly 60% of the heuristics. The new ranking system is an incarnation of the publisher’s earlier collaboration, and was first published in 2010.

US News’s National University (or College) Ranking dates back to 1983, when the company first published the “America’s Best Colleges” ranking. To this day, the trademark is still used, but methodology has evolved with societal needs. In 2017 (for the 2018 ranking), the National Ranking first included a Social Mobility measures which considers how universities are catering to those who are comparatively economically disadvantaged.

Maclean’s University Ranking is the most trusted university ranking in Canada. Splitting the nation’s universities based on their main activities activities into 3 categories: Medical/Doctoral, Comprehensive, and Primarily Undergraduate, the rankings recognizes different types of institutions and their strengths. Nevertheless, the nation’s spread out geography and large discrepancy in population densities mean that the reputation surveys can carry doubts as to its reflection of education quality.

Therefore, should I care about rankings?

Yes, and no. If your needs are aligned with what the rankings assess (brand name, faculty resources, citations, etc.) , sure. If your philosophy matches with that of rankings, go ahead. If they go different ways, then do not proceed without caution. If you don’t know what you want (and there’s nothing unusual about that)…..then rankings will be a helpful guide. While you are at it, know that no rankings are immune to biasness, and it is up to you to discount how it might help your assessment.

Bottom line:

When assessing an institution, you should ask yourself: what do I want? How do I want it? If an institution’s offering answers the questions better than all others, then it’s the best university for you.

Caution !!!

Just like rankings, this post is subjective. The author is not responsible for reader’s university choices, negative bank account numbers, unplanned pregnancies, spilled coffee, and other life decisions.

Ranking metrics are recategorised from the author’s perspective. This post does not attempt to be 100% accurate in any representation of rankings and their methodologies. Please refer to the publication/company for the most accurate information.