Babson College: We’re # 2! (and also #96)

It’s college ranking season, so take your pick of lists. They all vary based on the metrics used to rank, and can be sliced and diced to your pleasure.

Babson College is over the moon about being #2 on the WSJ/College Pulse ranking of U.S. colleges list, sandwiched between Princeton and Stanford. Last time around, Babson was #10.

The WSJ rankings focus on outcomes, rewarding schools based on data like graduation rates and graduate salaries. That’s where Wellesley-based Babson excels.

An email from Babson arriving in our inbox on Friday exclaimed “No. 2! Babson Ascends to Upper Echelon of Wall Street Journal Rankings.”

We happened to be at Babson this morning, and we brought up the news with students we talked to, and some brought it up to us. Reactions ranged from “it’s cool” to “we have nowhere to go but down now” (well, technically, that’s not true).

The ranking gave Babson a chance to reflect on its perennial top spot in U.S. News & World Report rankings for entrepreneurship programs. New U.S. News rankings are expected to be out soon.

Separately, Forbes also just issued its list of “America’s Top Colleges.” Babson sits at 96 on that one (see metrics used).

Princeton, meanwhile, doesn’t need to pick a list to celebrate. It’s No. 1 on the WSJ AND Forbes lists.

What about Wellesley College? It’s #23 on the Forbes list and #86 on the WSJ list.