What measures of academic quality does U.S. News use in its rankings?
Indicators used to measure academic quality fall into seven broad areas: peer assessment; retention and graduation of students; faculty resources; student selectivity; financial resources; alumni giving; and (for national universities and liberal arts colleges) “graduation rate performance,” the difference between the proportion of students expected to graduate and the proportion who do. The indicators include both “input measures,” which reflect the quality of students, faculty, and other resources used in education, and “outcome measures,” which signal how well the institution educates its student body.
Indicators used to measure academic quality fall into seven broad areas: peer assessment; retention and graduation of students; faculty resources; student selectivity; financial resources; alumni giving; and (for national universities and liberal arts colleges) “graduation rate performance,” the difference between the proportion of students expected to graduate and the proportion who do. The indicators include both “input measures,” which reflect the quality of students, faculty, and other resources used in education, and “outcome measures,” which signal how well the institution educates its student body.
