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8.27.08
Erskine again ranked second among baccalaureate
colleges in the South by U.S. News & World Report
Erskine College has been ranked as the second-best baccalaureate institution in the South in the U.S. News & World Report's "America's Best Colleges" edition for the second consecutive year.
The ranking follows on the heels of Erskine being ranked the 95th-best institution of higher learning in the nation by Forbes.com
Highlights of the college rankings will be published in the Sept. 1 issue of U.S. News & World Report, which was available for newsstand purchase on Monday, Aug. 25. The 2009 America's Best Colleges will be available as of Tuesday, Aug. 26.
The Best Baccalaureate Colleges are institutions that focus on undergraduate education and offer a range of degree programs -- in the liberal arts, which account for fewer than half of their bachelor's degrees, and in professional fields such as business, education and athletic training.
"Erskine's standing in both U.S. News and the new Forbes college rankings shows that we are a remarkably fine educational institution regardless of the methodology used," said Dr. Donald V. Weatherman, executive vice president and dean at Erskine. "I appreciate the Forbes system because it is based on hard data whereas U.S. News bases 25 percent of its ranking on the opinion of peer institutions. I always have a preference for facts over opinion. Fortunately, Erskine's fine quality is revealed either way."
Forty-eight schools are listed in the South's best baccalaureate colleges and Erskine trails only Ouachita Baptist University (Ark.).
Erskine is ranked ahead of all South Carolina schools -- Claflin is ranked 13th, Coker is ranked 16th, University of South Carolina-Aiken is 23rd, Newberry is ranked 31st, Anderson University is 33rd, Lander University is 35th, and University of South Carolina-Upstate is also 35th.
Among the statistics that helped Erskine achieve the #2 ranking were: overall score (96); peer assessment score (3.0); average freshman retention rate (76 percent); average graduation rate (67 percent); percentage of classes under 20 (77 percent, 2007); percentage of classes of 50 or more (0 percent, 2007); student/faculty ratio (12:1, 2007); percentage of faculty who are full time (82 percent, 2007); SAT/ACT 25th-75th percentile (983-1205, 2007); freshmen in top 25 percent of high school class (57 percent, 2007); acceptance rate (66 percent, 2007); and average alumni giving rate (29 percent, 2007).
There are 286 baccalaureate colleges ranked among the four regions -- North, South, Midwest and West.
The U.S. News rankings are based on several key measures of quality, including peer assessment (25 percent), graduation and retention rates (25 percent), faculty resources (20 percent), student selectivity (15 percent), financial resources (10 percent) and alumni giving (5 percent).
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