The University was ranked by theU.S. News & World Reportas the 30th best school in the Regional North category on Tuesday, Sept. 10, jumping seven spots from last year’s ranking.
Every year, theU.S. News & World Reportcompares all of the colleges and universities in the country and ranks each one on the basis of several factors, some of which include professional assessments made by other schools similar to the University, average freshman retention, and the graduation rate.
The 200 schools that are evaluated by theU.S. News & World Reportare placed in one of four categories based on their regional location: North, South, Midwest, and West. The University is a member of the Regional North category, which, according to Vice President of Enrollment Management, Dr. Robert McCaig, is the most competitive category. With Villanova University in the top spot, “We’re in some really competitive company right now,” McCaig said.
In the past decade, however, the University has moved up 46 spots, seven in the past year alone. According to McCaig, the University is one of the fastest rising schools in the Regional North category and he thinks that this is because the rate of graduating students has increased significantly over the years.
“Just ten years ago, that graduation rate was more than 10 percentage points lower,” he said. The graduation rate for 2012 was 64 percent, which was six points higher than the predicted rate of 58 percent. McCaig thinks that the increased graduation rate was one of the main reasons why the University did so well in the rankings this year.
Mary Anne Nagy, Vice President for Student and Community Services, felt the same way. “I think Monmouth continues to rise in the rankings for several reasons, including our record in increasing the number of students that graduate each year,” she expressed.
Nagy also believes that “our growing academic reputation, the personalized academic experience we provide and great co-curricular experience, including the opportunity to live here on campus” are among the many other reasons why the University has done so well in the past several years.
Upon hearing about the University’s newest ranking, Taylor Murphy, sophomore health studies major, said, “I’m so happy that our school is finally getting the recognition it deserves. All of Monmouth’s hard work is finally paying off.”
Caroline Keating, junior health studies major, agreed with Murphy. “It really shows that Monmouth’s efforts are working towards making it a better school,” Keating said.
The peer assessment score is another very important factor in the ranking of best schools. Since 2007, the University has steadily maintained a peer assessment score between 2.8 and 3.0, of which the highest possible score is a solid five. This score is based off of evaluations from Presidents, Provosts, and Enrollment Managers from other schools in the Regional North category.
Although the University has exceeded in almost all of the categories used by the U.S. News & World Report as a basis for their rankings, McCaig hopes that the freshman retention rate, which is another important factor in terms of this list, will rise. If it does, he guesses that the University’s overall score will improve.
But regardless of what the U.S. News & World Report ranks the University as the years go on, McCaig insists, “I would never make a strategic university decision based on these rankings. We need to do what’s right for these students. The rankings may or may not follow, but we have to do right by our students.”
Gracie Zwernemann, sophomore education and English major, was excited to hear about the University’s ranking, “It really reflects how great of a school we are and it makes me even more proud to be a Monmouth student.”
