Forbes just came out with a challenge to venerable U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings of colleges and universities. America’s Best Colleges ranks 569 four-year institutions out of approximately 4,000 schools in the country.
My son happens to attend Hendrix College, which ranked #97—not too shabby for a little gem of a private college half-an-hour outside of Little Rock, Arkansas. I wonder though about any methodology that uses RateMyProfessors.com for 25% of the evaluation.
Oh well, what the heck. These beauty contests are what they are—just one tool to look at in the college-selection process. If your son or daughter is beginning the process, look up some parents whose students currently attend potential schools, have your student visit the campuses and sit in on some classes.
I had a Cincinnati mom write me asking about Hendrix College and I gave her my honest opinion, and my son blasted the college’s overbooked housing situation in the e-mail he sent. Word of mouth is just as valuable as these rankings.
More later after next weekend’s sojourn to Razorback Land. College Boy will be setting up housekeeping in an apartment. Are sophomores really equipped for this level of responsibility? Ah, the worries of helicopter parents.
8 comments:
I hope you did not miss my bigfoot comment on your last post, I was amusing myself. Monkey man was $75.00 per hour and worth every penny.
Thanks for the tip. My daughter is a senior this year. She has her heart set on one college. I am not sure if I should pressure her to look at and research many colleges or if I should go with her gut choice and let it be.
Marsha, I only considered one school when I went away to school eons ago, but I think it is nice to at least think about other options unless she is sure she will get into her first choice. Good luck with the process. College Confidential web site is great for students and parents alike.
I would be interested in your comment on my post today.
Ineresting info Sheila..I'll pass this along to my cousin!
I have on my Herbs 'n Oils blog nominated you for the Brillante Weblog Premio 2008 Award as one of my longtime favorite blogs to visit.
You may acknowledge it or ignore it as you feel fit as over time too many awards and memes can be a pain :)
It depends on the child, I think, whether they're ready or not. One of mine was and the other wasn't. No difference in parenting between them.
Was your other son ready?
But on the whole, I think, kids are gonna fall, make mistakes, pick themselves up, take the wrong path...until they find who they are.
I call it the University of Life Skills.
You've got a lot on your plate, Sheila...try not to add your fledgling to it. He'll be alright. He's your son, isn't he?
your right sheila, flying buttons duck, there goes another one. Congrats on your man and his convention, did not win my vote.
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