The university dropped by 26 spots in the U.S. News and World Report international rankings this year, leaving a tremendous disparity between its international and national rank.
Georgetown placed 21st on U.S. News and World Report’s rankings for national universities, but 155th in the international rankings. Nationally, Georgetown is ranked between Emory University and the University of California, Berkeley. Yet internationally, Berkeley ranks 28th, whereas Emory ranks 107th. The top institutions remain unchanged, with Harvard University appearing first nationally and second internationally behind the University of Cambridge, and Yale University placing third in both rankings. Georgetown administrators did not offer an opinion to account for Georgetown’s comparatively low international rank.
“We have never cared much about these rankings and so I don’t have any major reaction to them,” Charles Deacon, dean of undergraduate admissions, said in an email. “I am not familiar with the international rankings, which probably reflect more on graduate and research influences.”
The international rankings, which are based on the Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings, are calculated using six criteria: academic peer review, student-to-faculty ratio, citations per faculty member, employer review, international faculty and international students. Georgetown’s scores ranged from an 18 as the international faculty score to a 75 as the employer review score. The composite score was a 53.1 out of 100.
While Georgetown boasts students from over 40 different countries, it is only ranked 208th based on international students. Georgetown does not appear in the top 300 schools based on international faculty members.
Last year, Georgetown ranked 129th internationally and had an overall score of 63.4. But while
Georgetown lags in the international rankings, it has improved in the national rankings due to changing criteria.
Georgetown officials cite the introduction of the high school guidance counselor information as crucial for Georgetown’s improved standings in the national rankings, as opposed to the international rankings.
“It’s worth noting that the methodology changed this year to reflect the views of high school counselors and that was an important factor for Georgetown’s ranking,” university spokeswoman Julie Bataille said in an email.
Deacon noted that the addition of the counselor evaluation reflected the reality of college admissions, as high school counselors, not just rankings, often influence students’ decisions of where to apply.
“The significance of that is that it reflects the views of the `marketplace’ [that is the] high school counselors and the students that are applying to college today,” Deacon said.
According to U.S. News and World Report, Georgetown is tied for sixth in the counselor rankings along with Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University and Johns Hopkins University.
