While I’m sure all of our students would say Mercyhurst is the best, US News also ranks our school highly in several categories. President Gamble says that “at the end of the day what matters most is that our students have an outstanding educational experience.” The efforts of our professors and staff are clearly paying off, as our school was ranked tenth of 41 schools in our area, and 56th in “Best Regional Universities in the North.”
This year, Mercyhurst opened its gates with about 700 new students, 80 of which are international students from 25 various countries. Considering that there are only 27 states represented in the freshman class, I believe there are more countries than states represented in the class of 2019. Because of this, Mercyhurst University was ranked 13th out of 180 colleges. This is the largest international populations our school has ever seen, and it appears that number will continue to rise. Also, in terms of ethnic diversity, Mercyhurst ranked 15th.
Many of Mercyhurst’s students are from low-income families, and are thereby entitled to a Pell Grant. Because of this large portion of students, Mercyhurst University ranked sixth in the category of economic diversity. President Thomas Gamble also says that “economic diversity is consistent with our mission, particularly within our McAuley School of Associates Degree Studies.”
All of these rankings are supposed to represent the quality of a university, and I am, for one, elated to see Mercyhurst being recognized for its outstanding students. However, I believe the true quality of a college should be based upon the success and happiness of its students and graduates alike. After all, if the degrees earned from an institution are not put to good use, then it was not a quality education, regardless of how high the college was ranked.