Harvey Mudd Ranked Top College for Innovation

Harvey Mudd College is the top liberal arts college for innovation, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 Best Colleges. The College takes the No. 1 spot on this year’s list of “Most Innovative Schools,” a ranking that highlights colleges making the most innovative improvements in terms of curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology or facilities.

Harvey Mudd ranked No. 2 for “Best Undergraduate Engineering Program,” moving from last year’s No. 1 tie with Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Harvey Mudd has tied for first place six times over the past decade.

The College’s engineering department was also recognized in the “Best in the Specialties” section for mechanical engineering (third place tie) and electrical/electronic/communications engineering (fourth place tie). Harvey Mudd offers a general engineering degree that is broad yet deep, emphasizing experiential learning, team-based projects and real-world applications.

On the “Freshman Retention Rate” list, Harvey Mudd ranked No. 1 in a three-way tie with Amherst and Pomona colleges.

Harvey Mudd came in at No. 4 on the “High School Counselors’ Top College Picks”, sharing the slot with Bowdoin, Smith, U.S. Air Force Academy, Vassar and Wellesley colleges. All five of The Claremont Colleges ranked in the top 30 of the High School Counselors’ ratings.

In the category of “Campus Ethnic Diversity,” Harvey Mudd ranked No. 6 among all liberal arts colleges in a three-way tie with Amherst and Pomona College. Increasing diversity has been a strategic priority for Harvey Mudd; the 2015-2016 entering class was the most ethnically diverse in the College’s history, and this year’s highly diverse class continues the effort to build a more diverse community.

Harvey Mudd placed 13th in the category of “Strong Commitment to Undergraduate Teaching,” tying with Amherst, Colorado and Oberlin colleges. Schools in this category were identified as having faculty who possess an unusually strong commitment to quality teaching.

The College was again named to the “Undergraduate Research/Creative Projects” list, an unranked selection of 36 colleges that offer students the opportunity, resources and faculty mentorship to produce stellar undergraduate research or creative projects.

In the overall ranking of national liberal arts colleges, Harvey Mudd tied for the No. 21 spot with Wesleyan University. Within the overall ranking, Harvey Mudd had the highest SAT 25th-75th percentile scores of all national liberal arts colleges and tied with Pomona College for first place in selectivity.

U.S. News & World Report’s rankings are based on a selection of indicators of quality, including: assessment of excellence by peers and counselors (22.5 percent); graduation and retention rates (22.5 percent); faculty resources (20 percent); student selectivity (12.5 percent); financial resources (10 percent); graduation rate performance (7.5 percent); and alumni giving (5 percent).

In a separate college ranking, College Factual’s Best Colleges, released Sept. 8, Harvey Mudd ranked No. 15 among all U.S. Colleges and Universities. College Factual compares the quality of four-year undergraduate programs at national liberal arts colleges and research universities combined. College Factual bases its rankings on student body caliber, educational resources, degree completion, and post-graduation earnings.