University of Arkansas Ranked in Top Tier

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The University of Arkansas has returned to the top tier of colleges and universities in the 2008 edition of America’s Best Colleges, the annual rating report devised by U.S. News and World Report. The university ranks 124th among all national undergraduate institutions of higher education.

The survey data also places it among the top 62 national public universities.

The University of Arkansas is the only institution in the state ranked in the first tier of national universities by U.S. News.

“This is a noteworthy distinction reserved for only the best 130 public and private institutions in the country,” said Chancellor John A. White. “We have made a long-term commitment to improving every aspect of this university. That commitment is benefiting our students first, and then our state. But word of our growing impact continues to spread and gain recognition. As our peers at other universities see the results we produce, that will be reflected in our national reputation, and our national ranking.

“U.S. News and World Report’s annual guide gives us an idea of how we compare with other institutions, where we are strong and where we need to improve, and in that way it is valuable,” White said. “We are all competing to be the best, and that competition is good for higher education.”

The Sam M. Walton College of Business was again ranked among the top 50 business programs, ranking 41st overall. Among public universities, the data puts the Walton College among the top 24 public business schools.

U.S. News and World Report bases its rankings on seven categories: peer assessment, graduation rates, retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving. Peer assessment, the subjective evaluations by college officials from other universities, counts for 25 percent of the overall score. Graduation and retention rates are weighted to account for nearly half of that final score.

The university edged into the top tier in the 2004 rankings but dropped back in 2005 to the top of what U.S. News calls its third tier. Its rating system used to have a second tier but now simply splits its rankings into a first tier and a third tier.