Several colleges are questioning the value of U.S. News & World Report rankings and refusing to participate in the magazine's annual survey.
A letter circulated by the non-profit organization Education Conservancy "calls into question the weight given to the prestige of an institution and the value that that ... plays in the actual education delivered to the students," according to David Muha, spokesperson for Drew University, a signatory of the letter.
The U.S. News & World Report rankings, published each spring, currently rate colleges and universities based on several criteria, including alumni giving rates, retention rates and class sizes.
The "reputational survey," which is also used in computing schools' rankings, is a multiple-page document that asks schools to rate peer institutions on a scale of one to five, Muha said.
Muha added that he believes the survey is too long for respondents to be able to give meaningful answers.
"It really is just kind of a quick impression," he said.
University of Virginia spokesperson Jeff Hanna said schools spend varying amounts of time filling out the survey.
"My sense is that [at the University] there's a lot of thought put into it," he said.
Hanna added that the survey is sent to the offices of the president, provost and dean of admissions.
U.S. News & World Report is unconcerned about the negative response to the survey, according to spokesperson Cynthia Powell.
"There has been over the years different levels of resistance over the rankings," she said.
Powell also noted the rankings' popularity among consumers.
"It's a product that has fed upon itself," she said. "Clearly there is a hunger among consumers for this information."
Powell added that the rankings are intended to be a tool for students and their parents to help them compare colleges and universities.
"Why shouldn't colleges and universities be held accountable for the product that they're offering?" she asked.
Muha also noted the importance of helping prospective college students choose a school.
"Rankings in and of themselves aren't a bad thing," he said. "Prospective students need a way to sort through the different schools."
Officials at Drew University take issue with the presentation of the rankings, Muha said, noting that students are not currently able to choose how to weigh various criteria.
Powell said U.S. News & World Report is considering adding such a tool to the Web site some time in the future.
Hanna said it is important for prospective students to gather a wide variety of information about colleges, including the data used by U.S. News & World Report.
"The numbers underneath the rankings are valuable tools -- the question is are there other things that are important as well," he said.
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