Tufts moved up one spot in this year's U.S. News & World Report rankings of the country's best colleges.
The 2006 issue, published last month, lists the undergraduate college at 27th among national universities. It shares the rank with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Wake Forest University.
Tufts' undergraduate school was ranked 28th by the magazine last year and 25th the year before. The undergraduate rankings are a composite of numerous academic and financial statistics and a peer assessment survey, which asks other schools' administrators and faculty to evaluate a school's academic reputation.
The School of Engineering was ranked 67th among undergraduate engineering programs. Tufts is not ranked in any of the engineering specialty subcategories.
The engineering program at Tufts is tied with Auburn University, Boston University, Northeastern University, Polytechnic University, the State University of New York at Stony Brook, Syracuse University, the University of Illinois at Chicago, the University of Tennessee, and Washington State University.
The magazine's undergraduate engineering rankings are based entirely on the peer assessment survey.
Dean of the School of Engineering Linda Abriola said that although the rankings are "disappointing," they are not reflected in the quality of applicants to the undergraduate
program.
"The caliber of our student applicants is extraordinary," she said. "Undergraduates... come here because of our unique environment and our close ties with Arts and Sciences."
Abriola said the school is undergoing many improvements, such as the building of an Integrated Lab Complex with the School of Arts and Sciences that will add research space, the hiring of new faculty, and the expansion of fundraising campaigns.
"It will now be important that we get the word out," she said. "[That way] administrators and faculty at other institutions [will] start to better appreciate what we are doing."
Three freshman engineering students said the rankings had little effect on their decision to apply to Tufts. Brenda Martinez said she did not read the rankings before applying.
Scott Schreibner said the rankings had "some effect" on his decision making, but he focused more on location and on name recognition. "Tufts as a whole is a well-known school," he said.
Courtney Mario said she relied more on college guidebooks than on magazine rankings. "It doesn't change whether or not I am happy with Tufts," she said.
