I don't think these rankings should be given full weight, however, they are somewhat accurate in measuring the quality of an educational institution. Loyola has lost five spots from it's previous standing (currently at 106). Not terrible, but given the amount of money that we are spending for the future, we shouldn't be moving backwards. I expected us to be at least in the top 85 by now.

The most glaring stat seems to be our student selectivity. 91.4% of students who applied were accepted! Seriously? Are we just trying to fill up dorm space now or are we going to become a community college?

Not good, Loyola. Not good.

http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandrevie ... icago-1710

A few things-

1.) The more new buildings and dorms are probably predicated on higher enrollment, and quite frankly, every student is a paying customer. So I could see us scrambling for bodies that are going to drop 40K a year for an education.
2.) According to our website, the average GPA is 3.74 and the standardized test scores are solid. So it's not like we're letting just anybody in (I mean we're clearly selective with the basketball team players...). Maybe we have admission officers who are upfront with students who wouldn't get in on their credentials, and they don't waste the time to apply. Also, given the economy in the past few years, people might be really starting to rethink spending the money for college if they truly aren't committed or qualified. If that's the case, why even bother to apply? Or if they're going to apply, why not spend less and go to a state school that's only slightly worse than LU?
3.) I couldn't find a number on LU's website to verify that 91.4% and I don't know how accurate that number is. Not only does it seem awfully high given the other statistics, but as a private school, LU can play its numbers close to the vest and not be FOIAed. Granted, private schools like the Ivies are going to preach their 5% acceptance rate from the mountaintops. Plus, I would think if anything LU would up their numbers for a big ranking like US News.

Loyola has been in the 101-111 range in the US News Rankings for as long as I can remember. A lot of times Loyola has been tied with three or four other schools, so fine movements in the 20 or so schools that usually occupy the general area between 95-115 can result in year to year movement.

One of the key things to remember about the US News ranking formula is the reputation component, and that is the area where Loyola really gets shortchanged. In general, Catholic schools tend to be downgraded slightly in this area-- a few of the exceptions are Notre Dame, Boston College, and Georgetown, who have qualities (huge sports profile, non-religious names) that tend to overcome their religious connotations. If you compare Loyola and other Catholic or Jesuit school academic numbers to other schools in the classification, you can see the disparity between reputation numbers that ostensibly non-religious schools get compared to Catholic and Jesuit schools in particular.

The reputation component comes from designated officers at schools within the classification (in this case, National Universities) who fill out a questionnaire ranking other schools within the group. For several years I filled out the US News questionnaire for the school where I worked, and I knew little or nothing about some of the small or obscure schools I was asked to rank. At that point, things like religious affiliation, location, public relations, scandals/controversies, the makeup of the student body, and yes--- sports reputation tend to play a bigger role than actual academics in how schools are ranked. I noted how Marquette moved way up in the rankings (somewhere between 15-20 spots) when their basketball program had a resurgence in the mid-2000s, despite having little difference from Loyola in the academic, giving, and expected graduation rate numbers.

One thing Loyola has always done well in on the US News rankings is expected graduation rate. Loyola generally graduates students better than would be expected from their ACT/SAT numbers and class rankings. Private schools in general tend to do slightly better than public schools in this area, but Loyola usually also exceeds that expected difference.

So, in short, I wouldn't sweat a minor fluctuation like moving from 101 to 106. If it were 15-20 spots, I'd be concerned. I think Loyola is underrated in the rankings (particularly the reputation numbers), and if we got athletics and public relations working better I think it would be fully possible to jump up into the 80s with our current academic profile.

We're #99!

http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandrevie ... icago-1710

_________________
MBB Scholarship Chart