Trinity's Improved Liberal Arts Colleges Rankings 2014

<p>Congratulations Trinity College, Trinity students and President Jones for Trinity's improved USNWR liberal arts college rankings for 2014. Trinity moved up two slots from 38 to 36. There's no doubt you will keep up the upward trend. As an alumna I could not be happier with the direction and leadership of the college.</p>

<p>You’ve got to be a Trinity admissions rep, right? You couldn’t be happier with the direction of a college that’s gone from #22 in 2004, all the way down to #38 in 2012, and is now at #36? I think the college has lost its way completely and is floundering.</p>

<p>No, I’m just a proud and loyal graduate who lives in the Greater Hartford area and keeps up with college news. I’m also the parent of a fairly recent Trinity graduate who also enjoyed and benefited greatly from her education. I wish only the best for our alma mater and I am celebrating an upward trend all around for Trinity, not just in USNWR rankings. She received as good an education as I did, perhaps better, although Trinity was ranked 25 when I attended and 35 when she attended!</p>

<p>I still don’t understand why we give so much credibility to USNWR. Who cares what the rankings are if you received a wonderful education with opportunities after graduation.</p>

<p>The U.S. News rankings are a joke. Colleges should be measured by the success of their graduates, not based on how many applicants they reject, or how many graduates gave to the annual fund. </p>

<p>The National Science Foundation tracks which colleges produce America’s scientists. Reed ranks in the top five based on percentage of graduates. Reed ranks poorly in the U. S. News rankings… they draw applicants who are well matched to Reed and accept a large percentage of them. A high acceptance rate lowers your rank.</p>

<p>Reed also suffers from a reputation of being so monochromatically hard left that the only arguments on campus are between the communists and the socialists. Reed is good at what does, but they scare off a lot of potential students with their reputation for in-your-face politics. </p>

<p>My kid took a look at Reed on paper, but decided she’d be miserable there. She can get the same quality education elsewhere without the political drama. I’m sure a lot of others feel the same way, which keeps the applications down.</p>

<p>I know someone who had 800 on CR and writing and 720 on Math SAt and SAT IIs all over 750 who was rejected from Reed last year. It is a school that looks beyond SATs and very good GPA .</p>

<p>Trinity always was and still is a fine school, just much more traditional. It suffered from some unfortunate fraternity and neighborhood incidents, situations that seem to be improving. A new college president will be named shortly and it will be interesting to see his/her effect on the college.</p>

<p>Trinity, in my honest opinion, is one of the most advanced liberal arts schools in New England. Although I’m quite glad to see the improved ranking, the USNWR is doing Trinity College a major disservice. Our society as a whole places far too large an emphasis on these simple rankings, and unfortunately, this effects the public opinion of a school. If you measure the success rate of students from Trinity College and Bates College, there really is no difference. The rankings of these two schools, however, vary by a sizable amount. In short, Trinity College shouldn’t be looked at solely based on it’s ranking, which is entirely political.</p>

<p>As far as rankings go, it’s a joke. A few years ago after it was reported that Claremont Mckenna cheated and submitted false SAT scores to USNAWR, their ranking didn’t budge. Shouldn’t their ranking have been affected?</p>

<p>Erm, actually, Reed gets penalized by the US News (and has been since 1995) because it refuses to submit data to US News. Before that time, it used to be ranked in the top 10. Its low rank has nothing to do with acceptance rates (which, for what it’s worth, the administration has recently been trying to decrease these days). Note that, despite an acceptance rate of 37%, Reed’s mid 25-75 percentile SAT and ACT scores are similar to those of Middlebury (despite its test-flexible policy) and Vassar. </p>

<p>Most LACs, unlike Trinity, are overwhelmingly liberal, so the ‘political drama’ thing is pointless if you want to go to an LAC w/ strong academics.</p>

<p>Why does it matter that Trinity is ranked #36 or #38 or whatever? It continues to attract thousands of applicants and accepts only about 30% of them. The school clearly does not need to be concerned about its brand. Trinity, in fact, is one of the few LACs that offer degrees in engineering, and that in itself is a major draw.</p>

<p>Congratulations Trinity. #45 and sinking fast!</p>

<p>When President Jones took over in 2004, Trinity was at #22. Maybe with his departure, the College can begin to turn itself around.</p>

<p>Trinity is the most underrated school in the NESCAC. Trinity is producing accomplished grads who are going on to get prestigious, sought after jobs. Take advantage of the dip in ratings and get yourself into an amazing school full of opportunity. In the meantime, here’s hoping the new president can bring the ratings up to where they belong. </p>