In a new ranking of American universities, the Wall Street Journal has a surprise. The highest-ranked public university is listed as the University of Florida, and at #4 is Florida International University.
In the recent past, FIU has been ranked among the top 100 universities in the world. That was the highest FIU had ever been ranked and naturally, it brought a lot of joy in Miami and Panther land. So, imagine the surprise at being ranked #4 – and that too for a university that was started in 1972 – and without the endowments of Harvard and Yale.
So how did FIU ascend to a spot so close to the mountain top? Look at the criteria – and it becomes clear. It is a revolutionary way to rank universities and examines the value of education.
The Wall Street Journal employed a comprehensive approach that went beyond merely assessing graduates’ gross salaries as a sole criterion. Recognizing that individuals born into families with substantial financial resources often have greater access to elite opportunities and consequently earn elevated incomes, the Journal considered this important context. Furthermore, it’s worth noting that many other ranking systems tend to overlook the influence of privilege and nepotism within their criteria, potentially skewing their assessments in favor of those with pre-existing advantages.
One of the key factors examined by The Wall Street Journal that has affected the rankings is the value added. This analysis considers the difference between the salary actually earned by FIU graduates and the salaries they would have earned if the student had not graduated from FIU.
Given that many of our students come from families that have never attended, or graduated from, universities, this delta is large – meaning that the value added is huge. That’s why FIU has this huge jump in ratings.
This criterion seems to measure the true value of education and what it should be all about – not about how many privileged students have you admitted and how much money did they make, but how did the non-privileged students do, who are sometimes the first in their families to attend college.
The true measure of a society’s success lies not in preserving the status quo for the elite but in providing opportunities for all. It’s not about maintaining the wealth of the rich, but rather fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to prosper and attain financial security.
If education is about giving everybody a chance, FIU does well. 25% of its students are first-generation and nearly 50% are Pell grant recipients, which is given to students with high financial needs.
I have seen many examples. In one class, none of my students showed any interest in going on a Mediterranean cruise as part of a business course. When asked why, one student, whose family had immigrated from Haiti, told me that he was worried about earning enough money that week to put food on the table. Going to Europe was not on his mind.
FIU is to university education what Unicorn-Entrepreneurship is to venture development – giving the entire pyramid a shot at the brass ring based, not on privilege, but on skills and smarts. Some of my students from underprivileged backgrounds have become Rhodes scholars. Others have built successful businesses. It’s what education should be all about.
MY TAKE: I did not expect a revolutionary ranking system from the WSJ, the bastion of privilege. After a while, you get indifferent seeing the same old rankings where the big surprise may be that Harvard dropped a notch. Let’s hope this new thinking starts a transformation all around.
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