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In 2019 rankings of thousands of universities across the United States, Pittsburg State University has earned high rankings for several different programs and achievements. PSU ranked No. 1 for one category and ranked highly in others.
According to the 2019 U.S. News and Report’s rankings, PSU is the No.1 regional public university in Kansas, No. 26 in “Best Public Schools in the Midwest.”, and 101 in “Best Regional Universities in the Midwest”
Lynette Olson, provost and vice president for academic affairs, said she was very excited to hear about PSU’s high rankings.
“It reinforces what I think we know, and that is that we have high-quality, high-demand programs,” Olson said.
Pitt State also earned several rankings for online programs offered. PSU earned No. 8 in “Best Online Graduate Education Programs for Veterans”, No. 25 in “Best Online Master’s in Education Degree”, and 132nd in “Best Online Graduate Nursing Programs.”
“…simply because our faculty are dedicated to maintaining and enhancing the finest standards they have put in place,” said Pawan Kahol, dean of graduate and continuing studies. “The faculty and college leadership work cohesively with students and have created a culture of learning and respect. Dr. Sagehorn (chairperson of teaching and leadership) continues to lead the department and provide the kind of leadership that exists nowhere.”
Additionally, according to the 2019 Princeton Review, PSU was ranked the nation’s No. 3 Family-Friendly Business School out of approximately 800 AACSB-accredited business schools in the nation. This ranking was also earned last year by PSU’s Kelce College of Business.
“… Some graduate programs in education and history, especially online programs, that we have good numbers of students from all around who are enrolled are ranked highly,” Olson said. “So, ranking is affected by enrollment in program…”
Other factors also affect how the ranks are composed, according to Olson.
“…sometimes there are surveys that are used, like student surveys,” Olson said. “…but quite often it’s the metrics like enrollment or cost of your program. Those types of things really will lend themselves to ranking.”
Olson said that although “…once in a while there may be a certificate” awarded by earning these ranks, Pitt State does not receive any type of financial awards or donations. However, just the honors of being named help can be helpful for the university. The recognition of PSU from readership can help draw potential students to PSU to programs and schools that are ranked high for that discipline. Olson said this can be very helpful when advertising for international students.
“… they often look at what programs are ranked highly or well known,” Olson said.
Olson said that many of the ranking numbers will be used in future advertising for the university and for the specific programs that do well.
“For example, Kelce may use their high ranking in newsletters or advertising to attract more students,” Olson said.