Michigan State University ranks no. 38 among the 395 universities included in Washington Monthly’s 2019 College Ranking, improving nine spots from last year. MSU also ranks no. 20 among public research universities, up eight spots from 2018.
Washington Monthly ranks four-year institutions – from national universities to baccalaureate colleges – based on contributions to communities and the public good. Categories used to measure the schools include social mobility, research and opportunities for public service.
The publication calls its annual rankings, “our answer to U.S News & World Report, which relies on crude and easily manipulated measures of wealth, exclusivity and prestige to evaluate schools.”
Among Big Ten schools, MSU is in the top five, joined by Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan and Northwestern.
MSU improved its performance on specific metrics, including graduate rate (no. 13 to no. 12) and research expenditures (no. 36 to no. 33), and maintained its 27th position on a ranking of doctorate degrees awarded in science and engineering.
In Washington Monthly’s national ranking of “Best Colleges for Adult Learners,” MSU ranked no. 36, as well as earning the no. 16 position as “Best Bang for the Buck” colleges in the Midwest.