Why is Wisconsin falling in the rankings?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Wisconsin
1

<p>I graduated High School in 2003, and when I applied, Wisconsin was a reach and Minnesota was an absolute shoe-in. Well, I ended up getting into Wisconsin so I graduated from there and am a very proud alumnus. But the universities seem to be a lot more level right now, and Wisconsin actually seems to be regressing. What is going on? Even when I graduated UW in 2008, we were the 6th or 7th ranked public school in the country according to US News - now we're 13th, and this downward trend definitely doesn't seem to be reversing itself. The new rankings come out tomorrow so we'll have to wait and see, but I'm getting a little bit worried. With all the money the University has to build all those new fancy research complexes, I'm surprised they are slipping like this.</p>

2

<p>I know that USNWR changed its rankings criteria last year to put more weight on high school counselor’s views which harmed UW. I wouldn’t put so much weight on just one ranking though. UW is top 20 in the world according to ARWU, for instance.</p>

3

<p>About the same as last year… #42, up from #45. Hopefully that upward movement is building a bit of momentum.</p>

<p>Which is actually a total drop of only about 6 spots in 5 years, so thats not terrible. Still, I’d like to see it get up there in the low thirties or even high 20’s, but that is probably a pipe dream.</p>

4

<p>Big deal with the rankings. UW-Madison is a Top 50 school no matter how you slice it. If you keep up with the happenings–and being a Badger parent I do–you’ll know that the faculty is improved, the facilities are improved (as anybody who has experienced almost constant construction on campus can attest to), and students who are admitted and attend rarely leave unless they can’t make grades. While other U’s–including my home state UIUC–are cutting corners, UW-Madison has been proactive in making the overall experience better for the students.</p>

5

<p>You need to remember that the US News rankings are for UNDERGRADUATE education. With this in mind, look at the schools ahead of UW and ask: does UW belong ahead of any of them at the UNDERGRADUATE level? This answer is clearly no. UW is ranked exactly where it should be – in the 40s.</p>

6

<p>Don’t obsess about rankings. If the school has the academics you want and the rest of the fit is good then it is the school for you. You can find top quality academics if you make the effort.</p>

7

<p>The 4 year graduation rate might have something to do with why HS counselors view UW unfavorably. I was at the Mecum Antique and Classic Boat auction at The Abbey in Fontana Sunday. Naturally, there were a lot of UW alumni and UW parents milling around. I heard several parents complain about the excessive cost of taking more than 4 years to graduate from UW. Many of the complaints had to do with required classes filling too quickly, stalling the normal progression. The comparisons to the schools their other children were attending/had attended were unfavorable to UW in this respect.</p>

<p>Perhaps counselors are hearing complaints from parents.</p>

8

<p>Sure Jiff, whatever. Good to know you are still alive and trolling. I guess it shows UW alums can afford antique boats.</p>

9

<p>BTW, the response rate for the GCs was a pathetic 13%. They will be dropping that metric next year as it has no stat. valaidity.</p>

10

<p>

Actually, they couldn’t afford them. Hence, the grumbling complaints about their kids being forced to take longer than 4 years to graduate from UW…</p>

11

<p>UW tops in academic/sports rankings.</p>

<p>[Views:</a> Academic Performance and the BCS - Inside Higher Ed](<a href=“http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2011/09/29/how_football_conferences_fare_when_ranked_by_their_universities_scholarly_performance]Views:”>http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2011/09/29/how_football_conferences_fare_when_ranked_by_their_universities_scholarly_performance)</p>

12

<p>My husband and daughter just did the tour today…My husband found it VERY weird that the representative giving the info lecture reported only 60% of the student body graduate in 4 years. REALLY…that is a real concern for our family. One thing if it is by choice and another if required classes are filling too quickly. Been on many college tours the past 18 months NEVER heard that stat proudly spoken from the administration.</p>

13

<p>Well, you can start with two large colleges that typically require over 4 years to complete–Engineering and Education due to the commitment to real field work. Not much cost for the extra time and you do get paid in most cases. Outside that just about anyone who wants to can graduate on time or less. Many change majors, add double and triple majors, etc. When they studied the issue the most common reasons were not taking full loads due to working and stopping out. Relatively few reported class access as a real reason.
See this</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.provost.wisc.edu/4year/4year.html[/url]”>http://www.provost.wisc.edu/4year/4year.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

14

<p>I would say that most of the flagship state universities are essentially equal:</p>

<p>1)Minnesota
2) Wisconsin
3) Florida
4) Ohio State
5) Rutgers
6) Maryland
7) Penn State</p>

<p>and many many more.</p>

<p>For example, if the same student had a B+ average in political science at each of these schools, and applied to law school, I would say they would be considered equal candidates.</p>

<p>There are some exceptions to this rule. Berkeley, UCLA, Virginia, Michigan, come to mind</p>

15

<p>Depending the field of study. UW is strong in Bio-sciences. Stem cell research is world class. Coparing school without context is comparing apples to oranges.</p>

16

<p>

UW’s 4 year graduation rate is actually much lower than that at 48.4%. Here’s the 2009 (latest reported data) 4 year graduation rate stats reported by the schools themselves (UW and its Big Ten peers) to The Education Trust’s database:</p>

<p>U Mich - 72.7%
UIUC - 64.8%
UW - 48.4%</p>

<p>

<a href=“http://i993.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/albums/af60/ICimg/4yeargradrate.jpg[/img]”>http://i993.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/albums/af60/ICimg/4yeargradrate.jpg

</a></p>

<p>[College</a> Results Online](<a href=“http://www.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/default.aspx]College”>http://www.■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/default.aspx)</p>

<p>It is odd that UW’s admin is proud of that stat.</p>

17

<p>I wonder if poor advising contributes to this statistic. At SOAR, my daughter was signed up for only 12 credits to start her freshman year. Fortunately, we saw a thread on CC about the number of credits people suggested taking, and she added a four credit class. </p>

<p>Signing a student up for only 12 credits is especially sketchy because you pay the same tuition for 12-17 credits, if I recall correctly. Also, she has found that a 16 credit load is doable.</p>

18

<p>I can’t believe that UW can let that 48% four year graduation stand. The way to fix it is free tuition beyond 4 years. There should be an explanation why a student takes more then four years. I wonder how many credits of the average graduate.</p>

19

<p>If you want the real answers they have been studied extensively and it is usually the student’s fault or part of the major requiring more time to complete as in Engineering, Education and Ag. where many students do in semester internships and longer co-ops with no tuition is charged so the total cost really is not more. Very few even cited not getting needed classes. Sorry if that is not juicy enough.</p>

<p><a href=“http://apa.wisc.edu/JLM/TTD2006Sept_Cover_plus_Study.pdf[/url]”>http://apa.wisc.edu/JLM/TTD2006Sept_Cover_plus_Study.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://apa.wisc.edu/JLM/TimeToDegree_ExecSummary.pdf[/url]”>http://apa.wisc.edu/JLM/TimeToDegree_ExecSummary.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p><a href=“http://apa.wisc.edu/degrees/TTD_TrendsbyMajor_Undergraduate_0510.pdf[/url]”>http://apa.wisc.edu/degrees/TTD_TrendsbyMajor_Undergraduate_0510.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

20

<p>This tiresome debate is resurrected once again. Incredible.</p>

<p>While there is value to finding out all the statistics such as 4-year graduation rates, the bottom line is that 4-year graduation is alive & well in Madison. My D will acquire 2 undergraduate degrees, both in the sciences, at UW-Madison & will accomplish this in 4 years, with 2 summers. M-a-y-b-e an extra semester, if classes don’t line up just right, but I’m not overly concerned & also she’s never taken more than 15 hours per semester either.</p>

<p>Prospectives who are skeered off by a perceived low 4-year graduation rate should maybe investigate one of the other UW satellite schools in Stout, River Falls, Whitewater, etc. This is a big boy school.</p>