Both schools on the Hill advanced this year in U.S. News and World Report’s controversial list of America’s Best Colleges.

Syracuse University moved up two places to No. 50 and the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry jumped from No. 98 to No. 85, respectively, in the 2008 report.

SU has alternated between No. 52 and No. 50 for the past four years, said Robert Morse, director of data research for U.S. News. He called the alternation a ‘stable’ ranking.

Graduation and retention rates, faculty resources and graduation rate performance-which compares actual graduation rates with expected rates-were listed as the university’s strengths on the report, Morse said.

Financial resources and admissions selectivity were two of SU’s weaknesses.

‘Syracuse is relatively expensive,’ he said. ‘It’s not a deal.’

Susan Donovan, SU’s dean of admissions, could not be reached before press time.

ESF

Graduation rate performance caused the big jump for ESF, Morse said. Other strong factors were faculty resources and alumni giving. He identified admissions selectivity, graduation rate, retention rate and peer assessment as weaknesses.

The boost comes as good news to ESF freshman Andrew Marcano, who said he believes a positive review ultimately helps a school. A school’s rank could be important in a prospective student’s

The controversy

A growing number of college and university presidents disagree with the way U.S. News conducts its report.

In May, 12 presidents signed a letter criticizing the report and urged other school leaders to refuse to fill out U.S. News’ peer assessment, which counts for 25 percent, the largest factor in a school’s final score. The letter also asks colleges and universities to avoid using the rankings as a promotional tool or an indicator of educational quality.

The letter calls the report ‘misleading’ and claims it does not serve the interests of prospective students well. Fifty-two presidents have added their signatures since May, bringing the total number of dissenting schools to 64.

‘The whole idea of trying to rank colleges on a one-scale system doesn’t make much sense,’ said Vincent Tinto, a professor of higher education at SU.

Colleges have different admissions, goals and cultures, Tinto said. He said U.S. News’ rankings do not consider SU’s tradition of focusing on professions while providing a liberal arts background, which gives students in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, for example, an edge in the workforce.

‘Should it be 49th?’ Tinto asked of SU’s 50th place ranking. ‘Should it be 51st?’

He calls the rankings a ‘proxy,’ saying there is no standard way to measure student development and growth at college.

‘We try to find a simple way of doing it,’ Tinto said, ‘but it doesn’t work that way. People like numbers.’

U.S. News’ Morse admits the system isn’t perfect, but it does provide one ‘tool’ in prospective students’ college search process.

U.S. News’ data can be valuable to prospective students, Tinto said. But many details are not available on the report’s Web site without paying a fee.

‘We’re not out there saying that our system is the sole basis to judge schools,’ Morse said. ‘A misuse of the rankings would be if they become the sole reason for a person’s choice.’

Emily Dorko, a junior at Delaware Valley High School in Milford, Pa., said she takes the rankings into consideration but doesn’t regard them as a primary decision maker.

‘Visiting a school gives you a better look at what you’re getting into,’ she said.

Published on September 4, 2007 at 12:00 pm