Why We Stopped Participating In US News’ Medical School Rankings

Every spring, the snows recede, birds migrate north, and U.S. News & World Report releases its annual “Best Graduate Schools” rankings. The issue is a predictable hit with prospective graduate students and anxious parents who want to make sure their child gets into the “right” school. Universities that do well amplify the buzz by boasting of their ranking in ads, articles, and campus banners. The hoopla ensures that the issue is an annual moneymaker for the magazine. Much of the data U.S. News uses to generate its rankings is provided by the schools themselves. A few months ago, when we received the magazine’s annual request for information, we decided that the Hébert School of Medicine at the Uniformed Services University (USU) would no longer play along. Given the powerful hold U.S. News’ rankings have on public opinion and the views of applicants to colleges and graduate schools, some might question why we took this step. Our answer is simple. After scrutinizing what is known about the process, we concluded that continued participation is a disservice to medical school applicants. The flaws in U.S. News’ approach are well known in academic medicine. Fifteen years ago, two academic researchers conducted a comprehensive analysis of U.S. News’ approach. They concluded that “the annual U.S. News and World Report rankings of American medical schools are ill-conceived; are unscientific; are conducted poorly; ignore medical school accreditation; judge medic...
Source: Health Affairs Blog - Category: Health Management Authors: Tags: Equity and Disparities Featured Health Professionals Quality Graduate medical education Liaison Committee on Medical Education medical school rankings Physicians Uniformed Services University of the Health Services US News & World report Source Type: blogs