North Greenville makes the list of Forbes Finest Universities
Posted by The Skyliner on September 2nd, 2009Rachel Ham
Staff Writer
Usually, being No. 154 on a list does not amount to much. But being ranked No. 154 out of the top 600 colleges and universities in the United States is something to talk about.
North Greenville is ranked third out of 14 South Carolina schools in Forbes magazine’s list of the top schools in the nation.
Students and faculty alike at North Greenville University are proud that their school is getting some positive recognition.
But like Dr. Jimmy Epting, president of NGU, said in one of the first chapels of the semester, God deserves the credit for making North Greenville what it is today.
The prayers, hard work and dedication of the godly administration at North Greenville have helped to further the university.
The writers at Forbes did their own research to determine where the best universities would rank on their annual list.
Specific criteria went into ranking the thousands of schools in the country.
According to forbes.com, the methodology that was used to rank schools in 2008 has varied some for the 2009 list, but for the most part the way schools were ranked remained the same.
Student satisfaction with courses offered and post-graduate employment success counted 25 percent each in the ranking. With increasing costs and economic strain of this year, the estimated average of a four year student loan debt was weighted 20 percent instead of only 16 percent in 2008.
Other factors such as faculty and student success at winning national academic awards and number of students achieving a degree in four years were given a smaller percentage weight when compiling data for the rankings.
The colleges and universities themselves did not provide the information that went into deciding their ranking. The majority of the information came from the U.S. Department of Education’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System.
Schools that receive financial aid from the government must report data to IPEDS each year. The information used is the most current publicly available data.
Forbes also gathered information from RateMyProfessor.com. Posting their own opinions on the Website is how students can become involved in the feedback concerning their college experience.
Dr. George Hopson, Jr., director of institutional research and effectiveness, was very pleased when he was told about North Greenville being ranked on Forbes’ list. Hopson was initially surprised because Forbes had made no contact with the university.
Being ranked in the top 200 out of thousands is “pretty impressive,” Hopson said.
While the administration at North Greenville does not put much stock in magazine rankings, Epting was pleasantly surprised when he heard the news.
Epting received a call in mid-August from a friend congratulating him on North Greenville’s recognition in Forbes. Since the magazine had not contacted him, he had to do his own research to find out what the magazine had to say about North Greenville.
“I already feel North Greenville University is number one in everything,” Epting said.
Epting also commented on how having a “biblically-sound, Christ-centered” educational program is underappreciated in today’s society.
Having a quality education founded in a Bible-based environment is “the best way and should be the only way to do it, and God is blessing this university because we are trying to stay focused on Him,” Epting said.
As Forbes pointed out, paying for college is potentially the second-largest expense most people will have in their lifetime. The magazine wants to keep people informed about the many choices and options involved in higher education.
Helping people make the right choice in choosing a college is the primary reason the people at Forbes decided to research and rank the top schools in the nation.
Students, faculty, and staff should be proud of the positive recognition that North Greenville has received, but realize that the university’s advancement has all been made possible by God.
Tags: Fall 2009, Vol. 109 - Issue 1