This past week, the U.S. News and World Report released their Best National University Rankings of 2024. In the most recent rankings, Tulane University ranked No. 73 to tie with Indiana University Bloomington, falling from No. 44 in prior rankings. 

Tulane’s dramatic drop in rankings may be attributable to the new methodology for 2024 rankings. In the 2022-2023 rankings, U.S. News did not consider first-generation graduation rates, but in the 2024 rankings, first-generation graduation rates are weighted at 2.5%. 

Furthermore, the weight of “financial resources per student’” dropped from 10% to 8%. U.S. News did not consider class size which previously had a weight of 8%. 

Other private universities also experienced a drop in their rankings. The University of Chicago dropped six places to No. 12 and John Hopkins University fell two spots to No. 9. American University, a private university in Washington D.C., faced a similar fate to Tulane, dropping from No. 72 to No. 105. Howard University fell from No. 89 to No. 115.

The universities which experienced a noticeable rise in rankings include Northern Arizona University, Texas State University and California State University, Fresno, which respectively rose 68, 51 and 65 places. All of these universities are public. 

In a statement, Tulane President Mike Fitts and Provost Robin Forman said the new rankings did not consider the academic quality of students, the number of small classes offered or financial aid devoted to students with the same weight as previous rankings. 

“By almost any standard we are a better and stronger institution now than we have ever been,” Fitts and Forman said in the statement. “The academic quality and diversity of our students have never been higher, and over the past several years we have seen one of the nation’s largest jumps in yield and selectivity.”