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Michigan Tech ranks second in state for financing and career outcomes

By GRAHAM JAEHNIG

gjaehnig@mininggazette.com

HOUGHTON — With the first “early decision” college application deadline on Nov. 1, and tuition and room and board at a four-year college costing around $27,000 – $55,000 per year, the personal-finance website WalletHub on Oct. 18 released its 2022’s Best College & University Rankings report, as well as accompanying videos, in addition to separate rankings for colleges and for universities.

To assist college-bound seniors make the most informed school choices, WalletHub compared over 1,000 higher-education institutions in the U.S. based on 30 key measures, grouped into seven categories, such as student selectivity, cost & financing and career outcomes. The data set ranges from student-faculty ratio to graduation rate to post-attendance median salary.

According to WalletHub’s findings, the top 10 Colleges & Universities in Michigan are as follows:

1. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

2. Michigan Technological University

3. Kalamazoo College

4. Calvin University

5. University of Detroit Mercy

6. University of Michigan-Dearborn

7. Albion College

8. Kettering University

9. Michigan State University

10. Andrews University

In his report: 2022’s College & University Rankings, Financial Writer Adam McCann wrote that in recognizing the challenge of predicting future outcomes, WalletHub’s Best Colleges ranking also analyzes post-attendance metrics — the student-loan default rate and the share of former students out-earning high school graduates, for instance — to show the value of the education students can expect to receive beyond their undergraduate studies.

Regionally, Michigan Tech ranked 22nd in the Midwest, with the only Michigan university to rank higher being the University of Michigan — Ann Arbor, holding the No.3 ranking, behind Northwestern University, in Illinois, at No.1, and the University of Chicago at No.2. Northern Michigan University, in Marquette, ranks 213th, tied with Ursuline College, in Ohio, while Finlandia University, in Hancock, ranks 267th. Finlandia’s ranking here, however, is in the category of both universities and colleges.

In rankings of colleges, Finlandia ranks at 99 out of 900 in the United States.

McCann stated that while success ultimately rests on students’ own determination and performance, the quality of the schools they choose can certainly have an impact.

“However, attending higher education requires more than just the grades to get in,” he cautioned. “You’ll also need the financial resources to attend. On average, tuition and room and board at a four-year college costs around $27,000 – $55,000 per year. It varies depending on the school’s public or private status and whether it’s in-state. For those prices, students want to know they are getting a good deal.”

WalletHub also examined the question of whether a college or a university is a better option. For those who prefer widely diverse academic and social opportunities, university is often the answer.

Universities boast many advantages over colleges, said McCann. Aside from having larger enrollment numbers that promise a dynamic campus life, universities offer both undergraduate- and graduate-level programs that lead to bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees. Students with an appetite for different subjects can even pursue multiple degree tracks at once.

But university students also give up certain privileges afforded to their peers at smaller colleges, he cautioned. For instance, university students in lower-level courses often receive classroom instruction from teaching assistants instead of professors, who may spend more time researching than teaching. Large, crowded lecture halls can also make learning more of a challenge.

In its methodology, WalletHub stated that institutions were considered colleges if they provide only undergraduate, or baccalaureate degree programs, and universities if they offer graduate, including masters and/or doctoral degree programs.

To view WalletHub’s report online, please visit https://wallethub.com/edu/e/college-rankings/40750

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