Ohio University dropped four spots in this year’s U.S. News and World Report university rankings, failing to rise in the rankings for the sixth consecutive year.
OU was ranked No. 135 among national universities and No. 68 among public universities, down 37 and 22 spots, respectively, since 2004, when President Roderick McDavis was inaugurated, according to the magazine and previous Post articles.
Since 2007 — when the school was ranked No. 110 — OU has fallen or maintained its position in the rankings each year, according to a previous Post article.
When McDavis became OU’s president in 2004, he said in his inaugural address that the university needed to move higher in the rankings, according to OU’s report of his speech. OU was ranked as the 98th best university overall and the 46th best public university in the country at the time, according to a previous Post article.
“We are once again pleased to see that Ohio University is ranked among the top schools in the nation,” said Pam Benoit, OU’s executive vice president and provost. “We are competitive with a broad range of public and private institutions and are particularly proud of our recruitment and retention efforts.”
McDavis and Benoit were not available to answer specific questions about why OU has consistently fallen in the rankings.
This year, OU is tied with the University of Cincinnati, trailing Ohio State University, No. 52, and Miami University, No. 75. Bowling Green State University was rated No. 181 while Kent State University was No. 201.
The report’s methodology changed from last year, with less emphasis on high school class rank and more on standardized test scores and graduation rate performance, according to Robert Morse, the report’s director, on his blog.
dd195710@ohiou.edu
@WillDrabold
Sam Howard contributed to this article.
