<p>"SAT score is only one rather simplistic factor. Here are some additional things to consider: The faculty-student ratio is better at FSU (fsu-21.3; ucf-28.8; uf-21.7). This means smaller classes and better chance of work with faculty. "</p>
<p>This is a simplistic way of viewing this statistic, and I feel is a major problem with US NEWS ranking. A better metric would be the MEDIAN number of students per class. I think that going to college and having a lecture with 200 students for Chemistry 101 or psychology 200 is not such a bad thing. When students reach the advanced material and upper level classes, that is when it becomes more crucial to have more faculty interaction. In short, if you NEED a small student/faculty ratio in intro classes, maybe you’re not prepared to actually be in college. Again, the MEDIAN number of students per class would be much more telling.</p>
<p>“(fsu-21.3; ucf-28.8; uf-21.7) FSU has a better faculty-student ratio than UF, btw.”</p>
<p>by 1.8%, which is statistically not significant, as it boils down to another less than 0.25 extra students per 25 person class and 3.5 extra students per 200 student lecture course. </p>
<p>Again, I would love to see the median students per class.</p>
<p>Makes you wonder if the number crunchers at US NEWS ever took basic high school statistics.</p>
<p>FSU DOES have a significant advantage over UCF here, although, I highly doubt it makes a difference. In order for the students per class to make a REAL difference in educational quality, one must assume that the teaching quality of ALL professors is constant and the pedantic efficacy of ALL professors is equal on a “per student in the class basis”. This assumption within the same school is a ridiculous one, never mind holding the assumption when comparing across schools. </p>
<p>Some profs teach better to larger classes, some profs teach better to small classes, some profs just suck no matter what and some profs will excel at teaching no matter the class size. The blanket assumption that low S/F ratio is causation for a better educational experience, in the aggregate (not anecdotal) is, to my knowledge, without real, peer reviewed substantiation. If someone knows otherwise, please share with me, I would love to read your materiel, as I’ve been searching for a while to find proof of this.</p>