For the seventh year in a row, Wagner College appears on the Forbes America’s Top Colleges list. This is the twelfth year Forbes has produced the list, which was released Aug. 15.
The Forbes Top Colleges list is “a uniquely consumer-focused directory of 650 universities and colleges focused on one measurement: outcomes,” says Derek Saul, a higher education contributor to Forbes magazine.
“These 650 count as the best in country,” say Forbes editors in the Top Colleges cover story. “We include just 15% of the 4,300 degree-granting postsecondary institutions in the U.S., so appearing here … is an indication that a school meets a high standard.”
Wagner College ranked number 338 out of 650 on the Forbes 2019 Top Colleges list.
Among the 68 colleges and universities in New York state that made it onto the Forbes list, Wagner ranked 44th.
Wagner College was top-ranked among the three colleges on Staten Island.
According to the editors, Forbes magazine’s America’s Top Colleges rankings are based on five general categories:
Alumni salary (20%), a combination of early and midcareer salaries as reported by the federal College Scorecard and PayScale data and research;
Student satisfaction (20%), which includes results from Niche surveys on professor quality and data, and freshman retention rates from the federal IPEDS website;
Debt (20%), which rewards schools for low student debt loads and default rates;
American leaders (15%), which is based on the Forbes database of successful people, including billionaires, powerful women, Forbes “30 Under 30” honorees, leaders in public service and in private enterprise, and more;
On-time graduation rate (12.5%), which accounts for both four- and six-year rates; and
Academic success (12.5%), which rewards schools whose alumni win prestigious scholarships and fellowships like the Rhodes and the Fulbright or have earned Ph.Ds.
