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An Outcomes Based Assessment of Universities: Using 'Who's Who in America'

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Bibliographic Details
Title: An Outcomes Based Assessment of Universities: Using 'Who's Who in America'
Language: English
Authors: Vedder, Richard, Coleman, James, Robe, Jonathan, Ruchti, Thomas, Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP)
Source: Center for College Affordability and Productivity (NJ1). 2008.
Availability: Center for College Affordability and Productivity. 1055 Thomas Jefferson Street NW Suite L 26, Washington, DC 20007. Tel: 202-621-0536; e-mail: ccap@theccap.org; Web site: http://centerforcollegeaffordability.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 24
Publication Date: 2008
Document Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education
Descriptors: College Outcomes Assessment, Access to Education, Student Costs, Productivity, Measurement Objectives, Measurement Techniques, Academic Standards, Benchmarking, Institutional Characteristics, Graduate Surveys, Higher Education, Value Judgment, Input Output Analysis, Educational Indicators, Educational Quality, Classification, Research Methodology
Geographic Terms: United States
Abstract: This study summarizes recent and continuing research conducted by the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) on the metrics used for measuring college performance. Unlike other rankings, this study does not concentrate on the inputs of college education such as endowment size, number of faculty, or the educational preparation of students as measured by SAT scores, etc. Instead, it focuses on the "outputs," namely the success of students after graduation. Using the names of entrants in Marquis Publishing's 2008 edition of "Who's Who in America" as their standard for measuring high levels of success, the authors collected the names of over 5,200 individuals, along with their educational background. This is more than a 5 percent sampling of all names listed in this standard reference work. From this sample, they then calculated which colleges produced the most successful graduates. The results thus far have been both fascinating and surprising. They have found that while going to top ranked schools as measured by standard college rankings does correlate with success, it is a weaker relationship than many may have previously believed. The study reveals that the "industry standard," "U.S. News & World Report" ("USNWR") rankings, on the whole, is only weakly related to graduate success. This suggests that the characteristics contributing to the value of a student's education differ substantially from what is typically assumed. The goal of this study is hopefully to serve as both an impetus and road map for future research into new ways of evaluating the value added component of higher education. Appended are: (1) Raw Scores; and (2) Weighted Index. (Contains 5 figures, 1 table, and 5 notes.)
Abstractor: ERIC
Entry Date: 2012
Accession Number: ED536489
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:This study summarizes recent and continuing research conducted by the Center for College Affordability and Productivity (CCAP) on the metrics used for measuring college performance. Unlike other rankings, this study does not concentrate on the inputs of college education such as endowment size, number of faculty, or the educational preparation of students as measured by SAT scores, etc. Instead, it focuses on the "outputs," namely the success of students after graduation. Using the names of entrants in Marquis Publishing's 2008 edition of "Who's Who in America" as their standard for measuring high levels of success, the authors collected the names of over 5,200 individuals, along with their educational background. This is more than a 5 percent sampling of all names listed in this standard reference work. From this sample, they then calculated which colleges produced the most successful graduates. The results thus far have been both fascinating and surprising. They have found that while going to top ranked schools as measured by standard college rankings does correlate with success, it is a weaker relationship than many may have previously believed. The study reveals that the "industry standard," "U.S. News & World Report" ("USNWR") rankings, on the whole, is only weakly related to graduate success. This suggests that the characteristics contributing to the value of a student's education differ substantially from what is typically assumed. The goal of this study is hopefully to serve as both an impetus and road map for future research into new ways of evaluating the value added component of higher education. Appended are: (1) Raw Scores; and (2) Weighted Index. (Contains 5 figures, 1 table, and 5 notes.)