January 30, 2011

Can New Online Rankings Really Measure Colleges' Brand Strength? Unlikely, Experts Say

Can New Online Rankings Really Measure

Linda A. Cicero, Stanford News Service

Ian Hsu, director of Internet media outreach at Stanford U., says colleges shouldn't get too wrapped up in the rankings: "It can be very tempting to chase after every ranking or goal that third parties are trying to sell."

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Linda A. Cicero, Stanford News Service

Ian Hsu, director of Internet media outreach at Stanford U., says colleges shouldn't get too wrapped up in the rankings: "It can be very tempting to chase after every ranking or goal that third parties are trying to sell."

By Kathryn Masterson

For a college, what's the value of a tweet? Or a Facebook item and mention on a blog?

In recent months, a handful of companies have introduced rankings that claim to calculate a college's brand value or online influence by looking at the attention an institution receives online. One ranking found that the University of Wisconsin at Madison has the strongest brand equity among universities, based on its number of mentions across the Internet. Another named Stanford University the most