StateUniversity.com Ranks Top 2,000 U.S. Colleges and Universities

CHICAGO, Nov. 8, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- StateUniversity.com, the leading website for college and university information, has released updated rankings for the Top 2,000 colleges and universities in the United States. The list is available on StateUniversity.com's website at http://www.stateuniversity.com/rank/score_rank.html. The StateUniversity.com ranking is based on statistical analysis and comparison of student/faculty ratio, student retention, test scores and other critical factors. The website also provides Top 500 ranking lists on data points including faculty salaries, SAT scores, student debt, top schools by state and many other criteria.

A key distinction between StateUniversity.com and other college ranking organizations is that the StateUniversity.com system is based purely on a mathematical computation and comparison of key statistics. Many other popular college ranking lists utilize peer review feedback, wherein colleges rate other colleges. Some critics have argued that peer review rankings may be subjective and perhaps even biased. The StateUniversity.com college rankings, first released in 2009, were designed to compare raw statistical data, without peer ratings or subjective adjustment to the rankings.

The top 20 colleges and universities for 2010 are:

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2. Stanford University
3. California Institute of Technology
4. Princeton University
5. Duke University
6. Rice University
7. Cornell University
8. Vassar College
9. Wesleyan University
10. Amherst College
11. Williams College
12. Brown University
13. Middlebury College
14. Carleton College
15. Swarthmore College
16. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering
17. Bowdoin College
18. Oberlin College
19. United States Military Academy
20. Carnegie Mellon University

Newcomers to the top 20 include Franklin W. Olin College, Bowdoin College, Oberlin College, and Carnegie Mellon University.

Dominik Mazur, founder of StateUniversity.com and Net Industries LLC, said, "We are very pleased to present these new, updated college and university rankings. As today's students face a tight job market and rising tuition costs, Net Industries hopes that these lists, which were developed by eliminating subjective bias and by utilizing the most advanced statistical methods, will provide a great resource to help students make these important decisions. I believe that the scoring system is a great complement to StateUniversity.com's school profiles, career overviews and scholarship guides."  

Mazur also cautions that schools should be evaluated based on students' personal values and preferences, and not only on numbers or rankings. "The Top 2,000 rankings - or any college ranking system, for that matter - should serve as just one of many facets that help students to choose a college. If these college rankings help students and their families explore new university options, or begin college discussions that they wouldn't have had otherwise, then StateUniversity.com has done its job."

StateUniversity.com's college rankings may be reprinted or reproduced, in whole or in part, under the terms of the Creative Commons 3.0 license, provided that proper attribution is given. Other Top 500 ranking lists include total cost of attendance, student enrollment, and ACT scores.

About StateUniversity.com

Covering all U.S. institutions of higher learning, StateUniversity.com features the most complete collection of school statistics anywhere. The website allows prospective students to compare schools, research degree programs and submit requests for application materials. StateUniversity.com also features school profiles, career advice, scholarship and financial aid guides, and content submitted by students and faculty.

About Net Industries LLC

Founded in 2002, Net Industries LLC publishes educational websites and is the creator of JRank.org, the free Site Search Engine. In addition to StateUniversity.com, Net Industries' online properties include http://Encyclopedia.JRank.org, http://www.LibraryIndex.com, http://www.MusicianGuide.com, http://www.StrangeQuestions.com and http://MovieRevie.ws. In total, the websites receive more than 10 million unique monthly visitors.

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SOURCE StateUniversity.com