U.S. News & World Report recently published its 2023 Best Graduate Schools rankings, evaluating programs in a variety of areas, including business, education, engineering, law, medicine, nursing and science. Before that, it released its 2022 Best College Rankings and as in previous years, the top three national universities were Princeton, Columbia – which tied with Harvard – and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Higher education institutions can use these national and regional ratings in many ways. Some of these include:
Differentiation. Colleges and universities use rankings to help set themselves apart from other institutions. High rankings are also a source of pride for institutions, which use their status in their news releases, tout the recognition on social media posts and include the positive ratings in their outreach to prospective students.
Use as evidence of a quality education and strong reputation. The high ranking conveys to high school seniors and their parents that the school provides a solid, valuable, quality education. U.S. News offers a variety of marketing opportunities for higher education to use their high positioning in several ways. Schools can opt for an audience engagement solution that provides direct access to their audience or a subscription-based proprietary performance assessment tool that provides access to historical U.S. News survey and rankings data. In addition, schools can purchase s U.S. News badge to use on their website, ads or promotional materials.
Highlight key strengths. Institutions that score highly in one or more specific areas want to let prospective students know about their unique strengths. For instance, William & Mary earned the top score on the 2022 edition of the U.S. News & World Report rankings for alumni giving among public institutions, and scored in the top 10 for undergraduate teaching. In the most recent rankings, Arizona State University was rated Number one in the Most Innovative Schools category for the seventh year in a row. The school uses the honor to garner interest in its innovative programs and created a Youtube video to highlight the honor.
Showcase core values. High rankings may also success in demonstrating a university’s core values. For instance, The University of San Francisco ranked number one in the nation for ethnic diversity, tying with the University of Hawaii, the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and Stanford University.
Establish the school as a leader in some areas. For the third consecutive year, the most recent U.S. News rankings asked top academics to name the schools with the best programs in eight areas: first-year experiences, co-ops/internships, learning communities, senior capstone, service learning, study abroad, undergraduate research/creative projects and writing in the disciplines. These programs are linked to student success and positive outcomes. These rankings may be especially helpful for prospective students as they research schools. For instance, Agnes Scott College earned a top spot in the first-year experiences category, and features the ranking in its materials.
Inform decisions. Not only can colleges and universities leverage their high rankings for student marketing, but also for some strategic uses as well. Schools typically monitor and measure their performance in rankings and compare and contrast their positioning, collecting data for benchmarking and to help their decision-making. Many higher education institutions revise policies, shift their focus or make changes to programs based on how they – and their peers – scored in ratings.