A handful of Georgia universities and colleges fared well in the 2018 U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings of the nation’s best.
Many institutions eagerly await the rankings as a marketing tool to recruit prospective students. The rankings are widely publicized, but are viewed as as more sizzle than steak by some critics.
Here are five key takeaways for Georgia colleges and universities from this year’s rankings:
Spelman College was ranked as the nation’s top historically black college and university. The all women’s college, near downtown Atlanta, has the highest graduation rate of any HBCU, 74 percent, and of freshmen in the top quarter of their high school graduating class at 73 percent.
Emory University had the highest ranking of any Georgia school on the national universities list. The university was ranked 21st. Princeton University was the top-ranked institution on the national list.
Two University System of Georgia institutions finished among the top 20 national public universities. Georgia Tech ranked seventh in that category while the University of Georgia was ranked 16th, two spots higher than last year.
Emory and Mercer universities were both considered among the best value for national universities, ranking 17th and 39th, respectively. The best values are based on factors such as the average cost after receiving needs-based grants.
Agnes Scott College was ranked the second most innovative national liberal arts institution. The all female college in Decatur also ranked as the third most ethnically-diverse national liberal arts institution.
To create the rankings, U.S. News gathers data from each college on up to 15 indicators of academic excellence such as first-year student retention, student selectivity, graduation rates and the strength of the faculty. The final scores for the schools also include some informed opinion, such as U.S. News' judgment in assigning "weights" to how much the measures matter. The ranking formula also gives weight to the opinions, for instance, of those in a position to judge a school's undergraduate academic excellence.
The rankings also breaks the schools down into multiple categories, such as regional universities, best public schools and best value schools.
Other notable top-30 finishes among metro Atlanta colleges and universities:
Best HBCUs
Morehouse College #4
Clark Atlanta University #16
Best regional universities in the South
Berry College in Rome #8
Reinhardt University in Cherokee County #28
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