Among the many issues with ranking schools, one of the most glaring is incorporating the input of those who are impacted by the result. Students reporting on MBA programs or University presidents ranking schools all put people influenced by the result in a position to influence the results. This creates quite the incentive problem.
Recent evidence comes from the rankings of schools (pdf) provided by University of Florida President Bernie Machen. The surveyed rankings are an integral part of the U.S. News ranking formula, and were obtained by the Gainesville Sun in a public records request. Other Florida university presidents were shrewd enough to “lose” theirs.
Continue reading »Ranking journals is a popular pastime among academics. Each of us has a favorite ranking, largely chosen by the results fitting with our favorite publication outlets. There are more debates over the methodology of journal rankings than of ranking business schools. There may be no universal agreement on the right method but there certainly is a wrong one.
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