Elmhurst’s U.S. News Rankings Rise for Teaching and Innovation
September 10, 2019 | by the Office of Marketing and Communications
Newly released college rankings by U.S. News & World Report highlight two particular points of pride for Elmhurst College—the quality of its undergraduate teaching and its commitment to innovation.
According to the 2020 U.S. News rankings, released on Monday, Sept. 9, Elmhurst rose to No. 6 in the Midwest—five places over last year—in the category of Undergraduate Teaching; and appeared for the first time, at No. 13, in the category of Most Innovative Schools.
Elmhurst also made the rankings in a new U.S. News category—Top Performers for Social Mobility, which lists the colleges and universities that have been the most successful at advancing social mobility by enrolling and graduating large proportions of economically disadvantaged students who received federal Pell Grants.
The rankings come as Elmhurst College prepares to officially change its name to Elmhurst University next year, in part to more accurately reflect Elmhurst’s growth and stature as a comprehensive institution that offers both undergraduate and graduate programs.
In addition to U.S. News, recent reports by organizations such as Money, Forbes and Colleges of Distinction continue to view Elmhurst as one of the best colleges or universities in the Midwest for academic excellence, educational value, post-graduation success and a variety of other factors.
- U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings evaluate schools based on measures of academic quality, including outcomes, expert opinions, student excellence and more. In addition to its rankings in the undergraduate teaching, innovation and social mobility categories, Elmhurst College continues to rank among the top institutions in the Midwest in the categories of Best Regional Universities, Best Value Schools and Best Colleges for Veterans.
- Money magazine’s nationwide list of Best Colleges for Your Money puts Elmhurst among the top 20 schools in Illinois for value and post-graduation outcomes. Money created its list by first identifying the nation’s 744 best-performing colleges and universities, then ranking each school on educational quality, affordability and outcomes. Outcomes are based in large part on graduates’ earnings, while affordability takes into account such factors as tuition, grant and scholarship support, and student debt.
- Forbes magazine ranks Elmhurst No. 16 among schools in Illinois on its America’s Top Colleges list for 2019. The Forbes list ranks the nation’s 650 top colleges on how well they prepare students for life after college, evaluating how likely students are to find success, earn a stable income and become leaders. The rankings examine everything from alumni salaries and debt to the graduation rate and number of alumni leaders.
- Colleges of Distinction recognized Elmhurst for the quality of its teaching and programs, as well as its focus on the student experience. Colleges of Distinction also cited four Elmhurst programs and student resources for their excellence: