29 IU programs in ‘Best Grad Schools’

By Susan Dillman

Merget

Gonzalez

Smith

Subbaswamy

The full rankings were released to the general public on April 2 in “Best Graduate Schools” and many appear in the magazine’s current issue.

The highest ranked of all of IU’s graduate programs was the School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA) in Bloomington, which edged Princeton University to capture the number three spot on the U.S. News & World Report list. Harvard and Syracuse universities tied for first place.

The ranking results were particularly significant for SPEA’s 29-year-old program, said Astrid Merget, SPEA dean.

“The fact that we are on a par with schools like Harvard and Syracuse, which are twice our age and have substantially larger private endowments, testifies, we believe, to the strength of our academic programs and the success we’ve had in accomplishing our mission of teaching, research and service in an increasingly competitive environment,” she said. (See related story, page A12)

Kenneth Gros Louis, vice president for academic affairs at IU and chancellor of the Bloomington campus, applauded the results, but cautioned that rankings are subjective.

“We are always pleased to be ranked nationally in our academic areas, and much of this confirms our beliefs,” Gros Louis said. “But magazine rankings, such as those in U.S. News & World Report, are highly subjective and clearly are not the best measure of quality. However, they do attract much media attention,” he said.

U.S. News & World Report editors agreed in an advisory sent to universities. The document stated that rank shouldn’t be the only criterion by which students choose a graduate school. “A student’s academic performance and professional ambitions, financial resources and scholastic record, along with a school’s size, atmosphere and location are important factors,” the advisory said.

The School of Education-Bloomington was IU’s second highest-ranking school, according to the U.S. News & World Report analysis. The magazine ranked seven of the school’s nine programs in the top 10. The school’s overall ranking was 15th, up from 16th last year.

“These rankings are an affirmation of the quality of our faculty and programs,” said Gerardo Gonzalez, university dean of the school. “The fact that we have been consistently ranked among the very best graduate schools of education is no surprise to us. IU’s School of Education consistently performs well in this magazine’s rankings, even though they change their criteria from year to year.”

The master’s of business administration (M.B.A.) program at the IU Kelley School of Business in Bloomington was ranked 20th. “It’s nice to see that the efforts of our faculty, staff and students are recognized by others outside of the university,” said Dan Smith, chair of the M.B.A. program at IU Bloomington. However, Smith said many initiatives aimed at improving students’ experiences aren’t reflected in the rankings.

“We consistently hear positive feedback from our graduates on how well the Kelley program prepared them. In the end, this is what matters most to us,” he said.

IU’s College of Arts and Sciences (COAS) also placed a number of Bloomington programs in the top 25, including English, psychology, political science, sociology and history.

In fact, only five other public universities in the country had more doctoral programs in the humanities and social sciences which were ranked in the top 25. Programs in the sciences, such as biology, chemistry, computer science, geology, mathematics and physics, were not ranked this year.

“My congratulations go out to all of the fine programs which were recognized by U.S. News & World Report,” said IU President Myles Brand. “We know our faculty, students and staff strive for and achieve excellence everyday. It is good when others recognize that as well.”

“While we should be careful not to attach too much significance to such reputational rankings, I take pride in the fact that so many of the college’s departments enjoy an excellent national reputation,” said Kumble Subbaswamy, COAS dean.

“Every university has history and English departments, and it is not easy to be near the top. These humanities and social science rankings show that IU is considered to be among the leading public universities in the country in these areas,” Subbaswamy said.

This year’s rankings are relatively consistent, compared to the previous year. They show either steady success or improvement.

“It is gratifying to see that, despite IU’s recent challenges and controversies, our academic reputation either remains intact or has been enhanced,” Gros Louis said. “That we have so many schools ranked highly among public institutions is solid testimony to the leadership of the deans and the productivity of their faculties.”

“The rankings also are testimony to the fact that despite some claims, IU’s academic reputation isn’t falling but remains intact,” said Brand.

However, the president added, IU’s success depends in no small part on continued state support. “Clearly, there is a direct correlation between state funding and academic excellence. Although our state is facing difficult economic challenges, we hope that strong, continued support is not in jeopardy,” Brand said.

U.S. News & World Report will rank undergraduate programs in a publication that is issued around Labor Day.