<p>Hi, im a junior who will be applying to MIT, Georgie Tech, UC Berk, and WPI. I was wondering why WPI is ranked so low. I believe from what my dad has told me this school was ranked in the top 40 (usnews) in the 90's and maybe even higher (30 range) in the early 80's. I visited this school and loved it and it has some amazing programs but why is it ranked so low?</p>
<p>I don’t think WPI was ever ranked that high. It is not nearly as selective as MIT and Georgia Tech.</p>
<p>well it says here that it was ranked 51st</p>
<p>[WORCESTER</a> POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE: U.S. News & World report rankings list WPI 51st among universities. | M2 Presswire | Find Articles at BNET](<a href=“http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5243/is_199808/ai_n19800914/]WORCESTER”>http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5243/is_199808/ai_n19800914/)</p>
<p>and it says here that it was ranked 48th</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.wpi.edu/News/Wire/Sept97/top50.html[/url]”>http://www.wpi.edu/News/Wire/Sept97/top50.html</a></p>
<p>all of these articles from 1990’s</p>
<p>any other insights? My father said that it was ranked close to the 30’s in early 1990’s late 80’s i’m curious as to why it has dropped.</p>
<p>My sister told me (a WPI alum)that it was also ranked in the top 30 for engineering…</p>
<p>yeah I was shocked that WPI is ranked so low, I decided not to apply there because it might not be “worth the high cost”</p>
<p>Pierre0913 is that a joke? Anyone have any concrete information though? i am really curious if anyone has any particular data or facts relating to this matter. I fell in love with this school when i visited and i would like some more information. I already posted this on the WPI thread. Just want to get broader perspective. Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>well I looked at engineering schools and being in-state, WPI and UMass-Amherst has the same ranking for engineering (#51). WPI costs over $50,000 while UMass costs $18,000 so it was pretty clear which one was the better value. I also visited WPI and liked the campus and school too, but reputation wise WPI might not be worth $50,000 in my opinion.</p>
<p>I dont think you can really compare UMass and WPI especially from a historical view point. In terms of prestige WPI from what I can tell is the best school for engineering in new england minus MIT. Plus UMass class sizes are just way too big and you def get better attention at WPI. One of the class sizes that i viewed had at most 15 people. They also have an odd curriculum and have 6 courses per semester (broken out by terms). I think i saw somewhere that WPI grads is among the top 7 for salaries when coming out of school…This school was obv very highly thought of at one point to be in the top 50 and i dont think Umass has ever broke the top 100.</p>
<p>E=MC^2, my situation is totally different from yours, for me, I can’t afford to go to a school as expensive as WPI so I decided to go to UMass which is in-state for me and has a equal “reputation” (notice I didn’t say quality) as WPI. There’s no doubt that the quality of education at WPI is much better than UMass because of the reasons you stated above and I’d definitely go there if I could afford it. However, UMass is also just as good when you get into the real job world because similar companies recruit at both schools.</p>
<p>If you are looking for a engineering school with a very good reputation with small class sizes and more personal attention similar to WPI, I’d look at Harvey Mudd or Rose-Hulman Institute Of Technology</p>
<p>pierre0913 this isn’t about money issue. In terms of prestige or quality you really cannot compare WPI to Umass. Umass is a fine school but WPI typically gets compared to RPI and other tech schools. UMASS rep is not strong for engineering where as WPI is known for it. Therefor the schools cannot be compared at all. Completely different philosophy and private vs public. If you ask anyone whats a better tech school they will say hands down WPI not UMASS. LOL you completely hijacked my thread anyone have any info regarding my OP</p>
<p>E=MC^2, I think that many people on College Confidential would agree with me that WPI and UMass have basically a similar level of prestige in the engineering fields… </p>
<p>I’m gonna stop hijacking your thread but I’m strongly suggesting that you look at applying to Rose-Hulman because that is a school similar to WPI except with a much better engineering reputation than WPI/UMass</p>
<p>OMG i am from Mass lol and i am only applying to tech oriented schools. I would never fathom going to Umass if i were to major in mechanical/chemical/electrical engineering. WPI has an amazing history and to compare that to umass is ridiculous. Please stop becuase this thread has become less constructive. These two programs are not comparable.</p>
<p>fyi I’m from Belmont, Massachusetts and I also applied to technical schools…ok I’m gonna stop posting because we obviously have different opinions haha</p>
<p>I brought WPI to my son’s attention because of their project-based curriculum. The opportunity to do projects abroad is unique among engineering colleges. He was also intrigued by their Game Design major, which he intends to double major in with Computer Science. He chose WPI over Rose-Hulman because he ultimately felt WPI was stronger in Comp Sci. </p>
<p>As for the rankings, it’s hard to say. Over the years, US News has “tweaked” the rankings so there is no telling what caused the drop without analyzing the factors. Could be because of the graduation or retention rates - freshmen decide that engineering isn’t for them or they can’t hack it and transfer to another college.</p>
<p>I sense its possbly due to how they structure their curriculum but not sure. I wanted to ask this question during the tour but felt that it would be a little rude.</p>
<p>The US News Engineering rankings are based on how Engineering deans perceive the school (so therefore just pure reputation), the US News National University rankings are based on a variety of factors such as graduation/retention rates, Selectivity, Class Sizes, Faculty Resources, Alumni Giving</p>
<p>Pierre0913 i understand all that. Like i said in my originial post that WPI was once ranked in the top 50 tied at 48 with RPI. My father has said that it was ranked even higher than that at one point possibly in the 30’s somewhere. My main question is, what underlying factors has caused WPI to gradually digress in the ranks. I suspect that some tweaks made to the rankings and WPI’s unique curriculum are part of this but just wanted more perspective. Thanks though.</p>
<p>In 1998, when WPI was ranked 51st, here’s the criteria that US News used:</p>
<p>Academic Reputation (25 percent) is determined by surveying the presidents, provosts and deans of admissions at other institutions in the same category. WPI improved its ranking in this measurement from last year.
Retention (20 percent) is determined by graduation rate and the freshmen retention rate.
Faculty Resources (20 percent) comes from five items that include class size, faculty salary, highest degree in field, student-faculty ratio, and proportion of faculty that is full time.
Student Selectivity (15 percent) is determined by SAT or ACT scores, percentage of those who graduated in top 10 percent of their class, the acceptance rate, and the yield.
Financial Resources (10 percent) are measured by the average spending per student on instruction, research, student services and related education expenditures.
Graduation Rate Performance (5 percent) is designed to capture the effects of the college’s programs and policies on the graduation rate of students.
Alumni Giving Rate (5 percent) measures the average percentage of alumni who gave to their school during the 1996 and 1997 academic years.</p>
<p>Today’s current methodology:
[How</a> We Calculate the Rankings - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/best-colleges/2008/08/21/how-we-calculate-the-rankings.html?PageNr=2]How”>http://www.usnews.com/articles/education/best-colleges/2008/08/21/how-we-calculate-the-rankings.html?PageNr=2)
Peer assessment (weighting: 25 percent).
Retention (20 percent in national universities and liberal arts colleges and 25 percent in master’s and baccalaureate colleges).
Faculty resources (20 percent).
Student selectivity (15 percent).
Financial resources (10 percent).
Graduation rate performance (5 percent; only in national universities and liberal arts colleges).
Alumni giving rate (5 percent)</p>
<p>And a letter from WPI explaining the “poor” US News rankings:
[Office</a> of Development and Alumni Relations - U.S. News Rankings](<a href=“http://www.wpi.edu/Admin/Alumni/News/usnews.html]Office”>http://www.wpi.edu/Admin/Alumni/News/usnews.html)
While we remain disappointed that this and other rankings do not measure some of WPI’s most distinctive and important qualities, and we share other concerns that have been expressed by many colleges and universities about rankings generally, we will continue to work with U.S. News and other rankings to present WPI in the best possible light. To that end there is room for additional improvement in several of the key parameters in the U.S. News rankings: our graduation and acceptance rates, peer assessment score, and average annual giving each present opportunities for further advance.</p>
<p>WPI, in a way, many engineering schools like Ga Tech, hurted by USNews ranking because its high acceptance rate (over 70%) and its low freshman rention rate.</p>
<p>For the past ten years or so, there are huge influx of applicants (kids of baby boomers) in many schools (i.e. lower acceptance rate). WPI, due to its limited program, hurt by that. It never became that popular. </p>
<p>At least at Georgia Tech, it gained more students from Hope scholarship scholar (free tuition for B student in state of Georgia) and its vastly improved college of management program. I hear this year, Ga Tech acceptance rate is close to 50% (dropped from 70%).</p>
<p>Still, I never remembered that WPI ranked among top 30 schools. For a while, it ranked top regional school. When it included in national school ranking, it always ranked around 40s and 50s.</p>
<p>Here’s a link to US News University rankings through the years:
[U.S</a>. News Rankings Through the Years](<a href=“http://chronicle.com/stats/usnews/index.php?category=Universities]U.S”>http://chronicle.com/stats/usnews/index.php?category=Universities)</p>