Academics
According to The Princeton Review's The Best 351 Colleges, "If the integration of faith and learning is what you want out of a college, Wheaton is arguably the best school in the nation with a Christ-based worldview." Students may choose from about 40 majors in many liberal arts disciplines and in the sciences. Some of the most popular in recent years have been Business, Communications, English, Biology, Biblical Studies, Political Science, International Relations, and Psychology. It is currently ranked #1 for best cafeteria food in the nation according to the Princeton review.
In 2009 U.S. News & World Report ranked Wheaton College 56 out of 265 Best National Liberal Arts Colleges. Wheaton continued to achieve exceptional rankings in several areas of the report:
- #15 in freshmen retention (95.0%)
- #21 in six-year graduation rate (86%) (2007 Report)
- #25 in SAT/ACT scores (1250–1440) (2007 Report)
- #39 in percentage of freshmen graduating in the top 10 percent of their high-school classes (54%) (2007 Report)
In recent years, Wheaton's overall ranking has been as high as 44. Wheaton asserts that its U.S. News & World Report ranking is lower than that of academically comparable counterparts because Wheaton is ranked lower in financial resources due to its lower tuition costs and smaller endowment.
Wheaton College ranked ninth in the nation in the total number of graduates (all fields) who went on to earn doctorates (during the period of 1986-1995) according to Franklin & Marshall College's latest survey, which included more than 900 private colleges and universities.
Wheaton is ranked 34 among all national liberal arts colleges for "Best Undergraduate Teaching" by the U.S. News & World Report.
The 2010 Fiske Guide to Colleges named Wheaton College to its list of 44 Best Buy colleges and universities, based on the institution's quality of academics in relation to the cost of attendance.
Kiplinger's rates Wheaton 17th for Best Values in Liberal Arts Colleges 2010-2011. Kiplinger's rankings measure academic quality and affordability, with quality accounting for two-thirds of the total.
Wheaton is now ranked sixth among all Liberal Arts Colleges in the number of graduates it sends to Teach for America.
A leading conservative Catholic journal, First Things, ranked Wheaton the #1 school in America. The First Things rankings “measured” the academic, social, and religious dimensions of American institutions of higher education.
All members of the college community—staff, faculty, and students—are asked to sign and adhere to Wheaton's Community Covenant (http://www.wheaton.edu/welcome/aboutus_community.html), which details expected standards of behavior. The college revised the Covenant in 2003. It now allows undergraduate students to dance at college-sponsored events and gives "adult faculty members and grad students ... the freedom to choose whether they want to smoke or drink alcohol, at least while off-campus."
Read more about this topic: Wheaton College (Illinois)
Famous quotes containing the word academics:
“Almost all scholarly research carries practical and political implications. Better that we should spell these out ourselves than leave that task to people with a vested interest in stressing only some of the implications and falsifying others. The idea that academics should remain “above the fray” only gives ideologues license to misuse our work.”
—Stephanie Coontz (b. 1944)
“Our first line of defense in raising children with values is modeling good behavior ourselves. This is critical. How will our kids learn tolerance for others if our hearts are filled with hate? Learn compassion if we are indifferent? Perceive academics as important if soccer practice is a higher priority than homework?”
—Fred G. Gosman (20th century)