The Foreign Service Journal, December 2014

58 DECEMBER 2014 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL EDUCATION SUPPLEMENT percentage of the score. Academic Reputation (22.5 per- cent). is is based on peer assessment, with surveys collecting data from college administrators and faculty, as well as high school guidance counselors. Retention (22.5 percent). Eighty per- cent of this factor is based on the six-year graduation rate, and 20 percent on the freshman retention rate. Faculty Resources (20 percent). One of the most complicated factors in determining rank, this comprises several components: average class size and faculty salaries, as well as student-faculty ratio, highest degree in eld, etc. Student Selectivity (12.5 percent). Also using multifaceted methodology, student selectivity incorporates SAT and ACT scores for an entering freshman class (65 percent), as well as class rank, with a higher standard for national than for regional entities. e acceptance rate is also a factor in selectivity. Financial Resources (10 percent). is is not about howmuch money a col- lege has, but howmuch it spends on each student for instruction, research and stu- dent services. Spi y dorms and Olympic- sized swimming pools don’t factor into this measurement. Graduation Rate Performance (7.5 percent). is is a relatively new factor, only in its second year. What this spe- ci callymeasures is a class’s actual rate of graduation compared to what was predicted for that class six years earlier. Students’ test scores and nancial aid are factored into the equation, since these have an e ect on the timeliness of graduation. Alumni Giving Rate (5 percent). is is considered an indication of alumni satisfaction. The success of the U.S. News rankings has spawned other ranking indexes from other publications, news entities and college-related organizations.