Every year, the Princeton Review announces its annual college and university rankings, and the ranking that always gets the most media coverage and attention is the Top Party Schools Ranking. This list, which comes out before the fall semester but long after students have made their admissions decisions, seizes the attention of both parents and students.
Parents may wonder: do we really want to send our child to a school on the list? Some students may wonder the same, while others, of course, will be quite excited to see their college or university of choice on this ranking.
So how serious should parents and students take this list? Here are some things to keep in mind,
Are Princeton Review College Rankings Accurate?
Princeton Review surveys are filled out by approximately 122,000 college and university students across the United States. These surveys ask all kinds of questions, from the quality of the dorms and the food to the political preferences and religious beliefs of students.
These surveys are filled out voluntarily. This means that the surveys are far from scientific. People tend to fill out surveys when they feel strongly for or against something, including the quality of their school.
In addition, from a social science perspective, "party school" isn't exactly a term that's easy to measure. According to the Princeton Review website, the Top Party School ranking comes from a combination of survey responses about alcohol use, Greek participation, and study habits (or lack thereof). This definition is easy to question. For example, what about students with poor study habits who aren't big drinkers? And what about big drinkers who are excellent students?
This is not to imply that the Princeton Review rankings should be thrown out. They offer information and perspectives from real students about college life. However, the reliability of the rankings need to be understood in context.
How Seriously Should Parents and Students Take Party School Rankings?
Parents and students should keep in mind that "partying" is just one aspect of college life. Most of the schools on the party school list are large state colleges and universities. These schools offer extensive options for students in terms of academics and student interests. Thus, just because a school is a "party school" doesn't mean it can't be lots of other things as well.
Of course, one major concern that parents have about party schools is binge drinking. Regardless of whether or not a school is considered a party school, these are questions parents should investigate. It's helpful to look at campus police reports and to find out what policies the campus has about binge drinking, underage drinking, and alcohol education. In relation to this, parents may want to investigate campus date rape statistics and policies.
Parents and students should keep party school ranking in mind, but it's important to use these as a supplement for other sources of information. To find out more about the degree to which a campus is a party campus:
- Ask current and former students
- Ask parents of current and former students
- Ask faculty members
- Ask law enforcement officials
- Read websites about colleges, especially ones that offer feedback from students
- Read college guidebooks
- Visit campus to get a feel for it
Admissions Decisions and Party Schools
Ultimately, students and parents need to decide how seriously to take college rankings about party schools. They should, however, consider that these rankings are not scientific, and that these are not the only way to get information about life on a college or university campus.
Source
Princeton Review. The Best 371 Colleges. 2009. Retrieved on July 27, 2009.
Naomi Rockler-Gladen - Instructional designer and freelance writer, Naomi Rockler-Gladen writes some of Suite101's most read work.
