UF named best college in Florida

[Zinhead]

http://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/20170726/uf-named-best-college-in-florida-fsus-ranking-surprise

If local University of Florida alumni seem a little puffed up today, blame it on Schools.com. The online educational resource released its rankings of the best four-year colleges and universities in the state on Tuesday, and the Gators came out on top. In addition, the university earned the No. 5 spot on the nationwide list, beating out 1,649 colleges and universities across the country.

Graduates of the University of West Florida have a lot to be proud of, too. According to the Schools.com ranking, UWF came in fourth, beating out such powerhouses as the University of Central Florida, Florida Atlantic University, and — say it isn’t so, Seminoles — Florida State University, which came it near the bottom of the list in ninth place.

According to a Schools.com press release, each school was scored on a 100-point scale using the most recent data available from government sources and based on metrics such as tuition and fees, number of degrees and certificates offered, flexibility, student services, student loan rates and rates of student graduation, retention and transfer.

[Gator88NE]

To get our list of the best colleges, we ranked 1,649 4-year colleges and universities in the U.S. Each school was scored on a 100-point scale, using the most recent data available from government sources. Our data points include:

1. The in-state tuition and fees for full-time undergraduates, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
2. The estimated cost of books and supplies, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
3. The average net price for students receiving Title IV grant and scholarship aid, National Center for Education Statistics, 2014-15
4. The average net price for low-income students receiving Title IV grant and scholarship aid, National Center for Education Statistics, 2014-15
5. The average amount of institutional grant aid awarded to full-time, first-time undergraduate students as a percentage of in-state tuition and fees, National Center for Education Statistics, 2014-15
6. Median debt of graduates, College Scorecard, 2014-15
7. 3-year student loan repayment rate of graduates, College Scorecard, 2014-15
8. No. of degree and certificate programs offered, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
9. No. of degree and certificate programs offered via distance education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
10. Percent of students enrolled in any distance education classes, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
11. Average retention rate for full-time and part-time students, National Center for Education Statistics, Fall 2015-16
12. Graduation rate within six years, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16
13. Flexibility and student services, based on whether the school offers the following services, National Center for Education Statistics, 2015-16 a. Dual credit b. Credit for life experience c. Advanced Placement credit d. Programs of study that can be completed entirely on weekends or in the evening e. Remedial services f. Academic and career counseling g. Job placement services for graduates h. Guaranteed tuition plan i. Tuition payment plan j. Any other alternative tuition plan

http://www.schools.com/online-colleges/florida

[sushipanda]

I think that website is seriously outdated because it’s gathering UF statistics from 2 years ago. I dunno, their rankings make me a bit skeptical if they’re ranking FSU as one of the worst schools in Florida and UWF as one of the best when literally every other ranking publication I’ve seen has put FSU at #2 in Florida and Top-100 in the US whereas UWF is always unranked.

Isn’t FSU the only other preeminent university in Florida due to its ranking and academics? This thing just seems a bit inaccurate and not very reputable. I’ll stick with USNWR, ARWU, and Forbes instead.

[shortnuke]

You can find faults in any ranking process, be it USNWR or this one. This one in particular seems to be focused on cost drivers. I’ve never seen a ranking methodology that took into account “Credit for life experience” before.

In fact, many of the ranking criteria should be very similar for all the FL public schools (Tuition, book cost, AP credit, guaranteed tuition plan, among others).

FSU and FAMU are also in a unique position in that they share the College of Engineering. Therefore, it’s entirely possible that FSU’s numbers failed to include its engineering program and stats for its Engineering students.

[Zinhead]

My preference is for ranking systems that rate UF highly, so IMHO, this is an accurate survey. One of the best in fact.