The latest survey of colleges and universities by U.S. News and World Report places the U-M 21st overall, two steps up from last year’s 23rd place ranking in the magazine’s “national universities” category.
The U-M is one of only three public universities included in the top 25. The Sept. 19 issue of the magazine, which carries a complete report of the rankings, will be on newstands today.
Among the criteria used to determine the overall rankings are reputation, student selectivity, financial resources, and five-year graduation rates.
Of the public universities in the top 25, only the University of Virginia ranks higher, at 17th. The University of California, Berkeley, ranks 23rd.
In terms of academic reputation, the U-M slipped from seventh to ninth this year, a berth it shares with Duke Uni-versity, California Institute of Technology, Columbia University and Cornell University.
Of the public colleges and universities, only the University of California, Berkeley, ranked higher (fourth) in academic reputation. The University of Virginia ranked 16th in academic reputation. Walter Harrison, vice president for university relations, said, “It’s always gratifying to see Michigan ranked among the best of America’s universities. While this ranking is somewhat arbitrary, it’s clear to me that our reputation remains strong.
“We’re particularly pleased that our academic reputation remains in the top 10 and that our overall ranking improved.
“These rankings, as always, are a tribute to the quality of our students, faculty and staff, and to the hard work of generations of Michigan people.”
To determine academic reputation, participants in the U.S. News survey rank other institutions that are in the same category as their own school from one to four—four points for the top category and one point for the lowest—by their reputations. Points are totaled and divided by the number of participating schools.
Overall, Harvard ranked at the top of the 229 national schools on the list, followed by Princeton University, Yale University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Duke University, California Institute of Technology, Dartmouth College, Columbia University and the University of Chicago to complete the top 10.
