US News lists Penn State as top-25 public school in latest rankings — but also as B1G’s worst value
Penn State maintained a top-25 ranking as one of the nation’s top public schools, according to US News & World Report’s latest Best Colleges Rankings, but the land-grant university was also listed as the Big Ten’s worst-value school.
The flagship campus at University Park tied for No. 23 among public schools and No. 63 overall, the same spots as last year while ranking in both categories as a middle-of-the-pack B1G university. But it was also ranked No. 174 nationally among “Best Value Schools,” putting it 14th among the 14 Big Ten schools and 10th in the state among national universities. (Pitt was not ranked; Temple was No. 75.)
After publication of this piece, Penn State spokesperson Lisa Powers intimated in a written statement that the university’s “unique structure” — of not having a system but technically a “one university, multi-campus model” — puts it at an inherent disadvantage in such rankings.
“The university’s unique structure also means that calculating an ‘average net price’ at a place as complex as Penn State (with our five tiers of tuition across 20 campuses and other residency, disciplinary, and class-level tuition differentials) and then comparing that number to other, very different institutions can lead to an inaccurate or misleading representation,” added Powers, who also said the university was pleased with its top-25 public school showing.
The methodology in calculating affordability and value included four metrics: academic quality — overall score in the Best Colleges rankings — relative to the average discount paid by undergrads after receiving need-based grants (50%), percentage of undergrads receiving need-based scholarships or grants (20%), average discount for undergrads (10%) and the percentage of 2020-2021 undergrads who received a grant or scholarship after also receiving need-based aid (20%).
In-state alumni and students likely won’t be surprised at the value ranking, which saw Penn State fall 10 spots from last year, because of its longtime reputation as an expensive state-related university. Outside of Northwestern, a private school, Penn State has the Big Ten’s highest tuition for in-state students ($18,368) and ranks in the middle of the conference for those out of state ($35,946).
After going three academic years without a tuition increase, Penn State’s board of trustees voted for a 2.5% increase this summer, on par with other state-related universities like Pitt and Temple. In December, US News named PSU to No. 10 on its list of colleges with the highest in-state tuition; it was No. 2 when university President Eric Barron took office in 2014.
“We always strive to support our students first by keeping tuition increases low or flat,” Barron wrote in a July news release, “and this year’s modest rise, though necessary to keep up with inflation and the university’s own rising costs, was held to the lowest percentage possible while still allowing us to deliver the world-class academic and student experiences that make Penn State so special.”
Overall rankings for Big Ten schools among public universities included 3. Michigan, 14. Wisconsin, 15. Illinois, t-17 Ohio State, t-17. Purdue, t-20. Maryland, t-23. Penn State, t-23. Rutgers, t-26. Indiana, t-26. Minnesota, t-33. Michigan State, t-33. Iowa and t-64. Nebraska. Overall rankings for Big Ten schools in “Best Value Colleges” were 18. Northwestern, 32. Michigan, 70. Purdue, 81. Wisconsin, 106. Nebraska, 109. Iowa, 135. Illinois, 140. Minnesota, 145. Indiana, 150. Michigan State, 154. Maryland, 157. Rutgers, 164. Ohio State and 174. Penn State.
For all of US News’ education rankings, go to usnews.com/best-colleges.
PSU’s Program Rankings
Penn State fared relatively well in the undergrad program rankings, where the university went unranked in just one program (teaching).
It placed within the top 25 in two programs — engineering (t-21) and business (t-23) — while finishing tied for 31st in nursing and 37th in computer science. In the Big Ten program rankings, PSU did not finish better than sixth.
US News, which also ranks more than 30 majors and focuses within those programs, gave Penn State especially high marks in engineering. In fact, PSU finished within the top 25 in 11 of 12 engineering majors, such as aerospace, computer and industrial. Engineering boasted four top-10 finishes: petroleum (t-5), agricultural (t-6), industrial (6) and materials (10).
Business earned the university’s highest individual ranking by finishing No. 4 in supply chain management. That put it second in the Big Ten in that respective category, behind only Michigan State, which ranked first in the nation.
Program rankings are based solely on the judgments of deans and senior faculty members at peer institutions.
Other rankings & notables
Although no Big Ten schools were listed as those being economically diverse, and only Rutgers made the list for ethnic diversity, Penn State fared well when it came to international students.
With 12% of the undergraduate student body made up of international students, Penn State was tied for 27th nationally, something US News follows because “in a global culture, befriending and learning to collaborate with students from other countries can be rewarding personally and professionally.” Only Illinois (13%) ranked higher among Big Ten schools; other ranked B1G schools included Purdue (12%), Northwestern (10%) and Rutgers (10%).
Penn State also saw favorable rankings as both one of the nation’s “most innovative” schools and as one of the friendlier schools to veterans.
In the “Most Innovative” category — which was scored based on college presidents, provosts and admission deans grading peer institutions on innovative improvements toward curriculum, faculty, students, etc. — Penn State tied for 34th overall. And in “Best Colleges for Veterans,” PSU tied for 33rd.
All of PSU’s rankings
Here’s a closer look at all of PSU’s rankings. Please note that only flagship campuses are included in the Big Ten rankings, and a school might not be ranked if it doesn’t offer a particular major:
Best National Universities: t-63 (t-8th in Big Ten)
Best Public Schools (National Universities): t-23 (t-7th in Big Ten)
Best Value Schools (National Universities): t-174 (14th in Big Ten)
Best Undergrad Nursing Programs: t-31 (t-7th in Big Ten)
Best Undergrad Teaching Programs: Unranked
Best Undergrad Engineering Programs: t-21 (t-6th in Big Ten)
Top Majors in Engineering Programs: Aerospace — 17; Agricultural — t-6; Biomedical — t-27; Chemical — t-20; Civil — 13; Computer — t-25; Electrical — t-20; Environmental — t-17; Industrial — 6; Materials — 10; Mechanical — 15; Petroleum — t-5
Best Undergrad Business Programs: t-23 (t-7th in Big Ten)
Top Majors in Business Programs: Accounting — t-21; Finance — t-31; Management Information Systems — Unranked; International — Unranked; Entrepreneurship — Unranked; Management — 12; Real Estate — 13; Marketing — 17; Production Operations — 12; Supply Chain — 4; Quantitative Analysis/Methods — Unranked; Business Analytics — Unranked; Insurance Risk — 11
Best Undergrad Computer Science Programs: t-37 (t-6th in Big Ten)
Top Majors in Computer Science Programs: Artificial Intelligence — Unranked; Biocomputing — Unranked; Computer Systems — 18; Cybersecurity — t-17; Data Analytics — Unranked; Game Development — Unranked; Mobile — Unranked; Programming — Unranked; Software Engineering — Unranked; Theory — Unranked
Most Innovative Schools (National Universities): t-34 (4th in Big Ten)
Best Colleges for Veterans (National Universities): t-33 (7th in Big Ten)
Best Performers on Social Mobility (National Universities): Unranked
This story was originally published September 13, 2021 at 4:40 PM.
