How important are places in the rankings

Choosing a university for higher education is not an easy task. Without knowing the peculiarities and nuances of the education system, choosing the right university is not so easy. One of the most important criteria for choosing a university is its place in the ranking.

Properly compiled rankings can help you understand for yourself whether the university meets your expectations.  But it is important to pay attention to the reliability of the data, the clarity of the criteria, the system for selecting respondents, the appropriateness of their sampling, the methodology and other indicators. All of this is important. The whole point is that one university can have dozens of places in different rankings. So, for example, by the number of programs the university can be in the first place, but by student satisfaction it can occupy the last position. That is why it is necessary to read university rankings correctly, as well as to know what to pay attention to when choosing a university.

 

University rankings are systematized lists of institutions ranked according to various criteria. These lists help applicants, parents, employers and the institutions themselves to evaluate the quality of education, scientific achievements and other important aspects of higher education institutions. University rankings can be national or international, and each has its own unique features and methodology.

●        National rankings usually focus on specific aspects of a particular country's education system, such as teaching quality, infrastructure and graduate employability. National rankings can be created by national rating agencies, public organizations, governmental organizations, etc. National rankings evaluate the universities of a particular country. Among the most popular ones are US. News & World Report, The Princeton Review's, National American Ranking, The Complete University Guide, Sunday Times, Guardian. These studies are published in major national publications, as well as on the websites of universities and rating agencies.

●        International rankings, in turn, evaluate universities on a global level, which makes it possible to compare institutions from different countries. This is especially useful for students planning to study abroad and for employers looking for the best professionals around the world. These rankings are compiled by major agencies and compare universities from around the world. Leaders of international rankings are such universities as Oxford University, LSE, University of Cambridge, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and others. The results of these studies are published on the websites of rating agencies, as well as in Forbes, The Times and on the websites of the universities themselves.

●        Profile Ratings. Profile rankings are created to evaluate specific areas of study. Industry surveys help to get information about which university offers the best training programs in a particular profession, for example, for the tourism and hospitality industry it is Taylor Nelson Sofres, TNS Global Survey, Worldwide Hospitality Awards. In the design and fashion industry - Fashionista, Business of Fashion, Domus. Research universities - Carnegie Foundation survey.

●        Student. One of the most famous student rankings is The International Student Barometer. Here the data is collected on the basis of surveys of more than 3 million students studying various specialties in different years. The top positions are given to the universities that meet the expectations of students the most..

It should be noted that often the results of different studies are quite different. This is especially noticeable when comparing international and national ratings. That is why, when taking into account the results of international studies, one should not rely entirely on these findings. In order to understand the overall picture, it is necessary to research different rankings to understand whether the university is really suitable for you.

 

Also, the differences in different studies are due to different evaluation systems. Some rankings take into account such indicators as academic reputation, student-faculty ratio, job placement rate, number of Nobel Prize winners among graduate faculty, and so on.  Others are compiled based on such indicators as, for example, the salary of graduates, the ratio of international and local students, the number of training programs and so on. That is why, when studying the rating, you should look at the points that are important to you, and not trust the results of the rating agency's research.