The Annual Farce India Today college rankings

You can make mistakes once. You can make them twice. But three times in a row implies an air of smugness and lofty self-delusion of the highest order. Take-it-or-leave it, we are India Today. Among students, India Today’s annual feature on Top 10 Colleges has become something of a joke. What else would you call results such as these:
1. Elphinstone, Mumbai is ranked the No 2 Science and Arts College again. 2.Xavier’s, Mumbai is No 1 in Commerce while Hinduja is No 3. 3.Bhavans, Mumbai (Chowpatty? Andheri??) is among the top 5 in Arts, Science AND Commerce. 4.LSR, Delhi is featured as the No 6 Commerce college in India.
To what age do these rankings belong? The World seems to have zipped past India Today and the respondents of its survey.
The problem, as JAM has painstakingly pointed out over the last 2 years (refer: Why the India Today College Rankings Suck - June 2000 and 2001), is the methodology. The India Today College rankings are based on the perceptions of 450 odd HODs, deans and principals. ZERO input from students.

In the year 2000 and 2001, these ‘experts’ from 8 cities were quizzed on their awareness and perceptions of colleges from a comprehensive list provided. Tell us which principal is qualified to comment on the educational standards of 400 + colleges listed in the questionnaire from all over India... AND rank them according to 7 parameters! India Today has complicated life further this year by asking respondents to rate colleges on certain key overall measures such as “advocacy” (whatever that is!) The one positive change is that a weight of 70: 30 was assigned to perceptual data and factual data. (For the first time factual information pertaining to factors like admissions, academic standards and infrastructure was collected from 350 colleges).
Despite this (commendable) effort, the rankings have achieved a hat-trick. They CONTINUE TO SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!! As in previous years, the “halo” effect operates, which accounts for the high ranking of institutions like Elphinstone (which were great colleges when all those Princis were young!)
India Today needs to realise that College Rankings by a national newsmagazine are taken seriously by parents, just-out-of-school students, even admissions committees at foreign universities.
Until then, take these rankings with a barrelful of salt.
Rashmi Bansal