AN EXAMINATION of a college profile listed on the new Web site www.collegeportraits.org tells me information I wish I’d known back in high school. Within minutes, I learn the SAT or ACT scores I might need in order to be admitted and the general odds of receiving any kind of financial aid. I can find not only the basic demographic information of a school’s undergraduate population, but also their success rate in remaining at the school and graduating. In deciding whether to attend, I might appreciate the list of the most popular degrees, the percentage of classes with fewer than 30 students, and the results of student surveys analyzing the quality of their experience.
In short, every aspect of the college decision-making process is represented on College Portrait, which was recently created to “provide greater accountability through accessible, transparent, and comparable information,” according to its Web site. The material is all organized in one template that makes it easy to compare different schools. What you won’t find, however, is any information about the University of Virginia, for the University has decided against participating in the voluntary project.
University Spokesperson Carol Wood outlined to me the various reasons for declining to participate. The University feels that much of the information on the site is already available on its Web page. Furthermore, the University believes that “financial resources spent on some of the assessments ... would be better spent supporting assessments that will provide useful information to programs, schools and the University.” Wood also explained one of the University’s chief criticisms with College Portrair, its attempt to measure student learning. “The notion that standardized reporting of student learning outcomes data will provide useful, comparative information to prospective parents and students is fundamentally flawed,” Wood said.
What the University sadly doesn’t recognize is that College Portrait’s design, thoroughness and legitimacy give it the potential to be immensely beneficial. The integrity of the vast majority of its information has not been challenged and is thus worthy of being shared with students. The method of collecting a wealth of information in one location free to all, even if some may be available elsewhere, makes it invaluable. College Portrait understands that the more information a prospective student has about a university, the more likely it is that he will choose the right school for him. High school students face a daunting task in trying to sift through the thousands of colleges in America and pick a few at which they could see themselves for four years. College Portrait is an admirable attempt to make that job easier and increase the odds of a decision that won’t be regretted.
The University’s concern about the validity of the tools used by College Portrait is legitimate, but knowing that they are collected in good faith by qualified researchers should alleviate our concerns. College Portrait was developed with the help of leaders from 70 public institutions and is sponsored by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. Together, these organizations represent more than 500 institutions of higher learning, In other words, the creators of College Portrait are well-credentialed. Naturally, the University need not participate in every endeavor attempting to teach students about college, but the respect other schools have given the site speaks to its credibility. That should cause us to trust that its information, as it was designed, will help students, not misrepresent colleges.
What’s even more curious about the University’s avoidance of College Portrait is its recent approval of the new “College Life is Cool” Web site, www.theclic.net. This Web site provides a network between students, colleges, high schools, families and community groups to allow them to organize their information in one place. A sample page for a college includes important application deadlines, test codes and quotes from students who have attended the school. Most impressively, students can create a profile and be presented with colleges that might be a good fit for them. In their words, “We don’t think your ability to find and apply to well-matched schools should be dictated by how much time you have ... or how much money you have to hire services to help you.”
College Portrait and CLIC are examples of the way the Internet can serve as a great equalizing force. They each share the same goal of expediting and improving a process as time-consuming and critical as applying to — and succeeding at — college. The University’s participation in CLIC is commendable, but that decision casts a harsh light on the related decision to be excluded from College Portrait. If the University desires, as it should, to have as much possible information disseminated for students to read, it should change its position on College Portrait.
Grant Johnson is a Cavalier Daily Viewpoint Writer.
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