Columbia University Drops Out of U.S. News Rankings for Undergraduate Schools

Columbia University (NY) announced on Tuesday that its undergraduate schools would no longer participate in the U.S. News & World Report college rankings, the first major university to refuse to supply information to the influential undergraduate guide for students and parents. Columbia said it had become concerned about the “outsized influence” the rankings played in the undergraduate admissions process. “Much is lost in this approach,” the university said in an announcement signed by officials including Mary C. Boyce, Columbia’s provost.