Revisiting the Relationship Between Institutional Rank and Student Engagement

• In Event: 31.042 - Prestige, Rank, and Admissions

Abstract

With the increase in competition between institutions over students, faculty, resources, and prestige, rankings serve as a fulcrum between institutions interested in trading up and consumers (students and parents) trying to make wise investments; however, it is unclear if ranking schemes (which rely on input measures) represent measures of colligate quality. Using data from the 2013 administration of the National Survey of Student Engagement, multilevel models were employed to explore the relationship between student engagement and three institutional ranking schemes. The sample is this study included over 80,000 first-year and senior students and sixty-four institutions. Findings reveal few relationships exist, except for a negative relationship between ranking and student-faculty interactions; implications of these findings are included.

Authors

• John Zilvinskis, Indiana University - Bloomington

• Louis Rocconi, Indiana University - Bloomington