Parchment’s 7th Annual Student Choice College Rankings

Which college should I attend? This question is one that plagues the minds of students their junior and senior year of high school and could very well be the biggest decision they’ve had to face till now. A calculated approach for the future, playing the game of odds: research many, apply to some, accepted by a few. Then, it’s decision time. But which school will they actually choose? Parchment’s Student Choice College Rankings analyzes tens of thousands of student decisions to help define the probable outcome in order to best predict this answer.

When it comes to that life-defining college decision, today’s savvy student ensures the odds are tipped in their favor with 80% of first-time freshmen applying to three or more colleges (NACAC, 2015). As College Connections explains, “Students apply to more colleges to make sure they gain acceptance to several colleges. In addition, both the Common and Universal applications make it easier for students to submit many applications.” Because of this trend, colleges are seeing an increased number of applications and students are having the opportunity to make their own decisions on where to go.

The increasing number of multiple applications in which students are submitting helps to fuel Parchment’s Student Choice College Rankings, now it’s 7th year. These rankings are calculated by aggregating and analyzing data shared by college bound students including where they applied to, where they were accepted, and ultimately, where they chose to go. This final enrollment decision is the big contender and drives the final point distribution, revealing the final ranking.

Parchment’s Student Choice College Rankings 2018

Top Five Student Choice Schools

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
   Cambridge, MA – 2,239 points
2. Williams College
   Williamstown, MA – 2,161 points
3. Stanford University
   Stanford, CA – 2,131 points
4. Unites States Air Force Academy
   USAF Academy, CO – 2,116 points
5. Claremont McKenna College
   Claremont, CA – 2,107 points

Read on to see the full list of this year’s results or learn more about how the ranking is calculated.

There’s always more to learn.