University Benchmarks

Ranking the Top 100 Academic Universities

UniversityBenchmarks.com ranks the universities that attract and produce the best academic students.

There are many 'University Rankings' on the internet. Most rankings rely heavily on subjective metrics like 'reputation' and 'selectivity'. UniversityBenchmarks is purely an academic ranking model. The rankings are based on the reported academic and financial metrics of the colleges. There are no subjective factors like 'reputation' that are used. The calculations are performed using normal statistical models. All universities are considered equal and there is no weighting of the ranking categories.

The university 2014-2015 dataset is comprised of over 2400 US Universities & Colleges and comes from multiple sources using the most favorable reported metrics for a university.

The universities are ranked against each other in each filtered set. It is an iterative process whereby lower ranking universities are removed and the set is re-ranked until the final set of 100 is reached.

Selecting 'Rank Top 10 Only' will show the Top 10 for each filter category ranked against each other.

The academic rankings of the universities within the major conferences (ACC, Big12, Big10, Pac12, SEC) are available.

The 2017 rankings will be available in August.

Notes:
  • It is possible for universities to be ranked higher/lower than one another depending on the filter set.
  • Conference averages are based on the top 8 schools in the conference.
  • Public Schools are highlighted
  • Clicking on the university's seal icon will take you to the university's website.

Ranking Fields

Rank - Overall rank based on the average of the ranking fields (Scores, Difficulty, Smartest, Brainpower, Faculty and Research).

Scores - SAT & ACT scores. The university's test scores are corrected for dropout rate when score level is Good, Excellent or Elite. This will slightly boost scores for highly competitive schools.

Difficulty - Academic rigor is estimated based on how difficult it is to get an "A" at the university. An estimated GPA at the university is calculated for the average US Student. University grade inflation, average GPA, and STEM density are factors.

Smartest - University that can field the highest scoring students based on the average US University size. Higher Smartest Rank = "Smartest for the Average University"

Brainpower - The average "smartest" rank using 5 reference populations (CalTech, MIT, Stanford, GaTech and Berkeley). Higher Brainpower Rank = "Higher Density of Smart Students". The university ranked higher can mathematically field 'X' number of smarter students than universities ranked below them.

Faculty - Ranking based on number of % of faculty with awards and academy membership.

Research - Ranking is achieved by iteratively ranking the average of 3 research metrics (r-pop, r-stem, r-other ). The lowest ranked college is then removed and the new set is re-ranked. The result is the schools with potentially the strongest research environments per student bubble up to the top regardless of size or research budget.

  • r-pop - Average research spending for student population
  • r-stem - STEM research spending
  • r-other - Other/Medical/Health research spending

Salary ROI - "Salary Return on Investment" is not used in the overall ranking but is provided for additional information. Using the undergraduate average starting and mid-career salaries, the rank is based on a 20yr salary accumulation (with raises) minus the cost of a 4 year education at the university. Salaries are normalized across the country using the average COLA for the university's geo-economic region (7 regions total). The COLA effect is diminished by the level of the university. Elite, Excellent and Good universities have a greater distribution of graduates across the country and a diminishing COLA effect. The resultant value would be the graduate's spending potential over the 20yr period.

Overall ROI - "Overall Return on Investment" is not used in the overall ranking but is provided for additional information. The average of Overall Rank and Salary ROI. This would be the "Best academic bang for the buck". Colleges that produce the best education, at the best price, with the best return will be ranked higher.

Color Key - ranks are colorized as follows 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 50 100

The 2016 University Academic Rankings

California State University-Long Beach

2016 University Academic Rankings
California State University, Long Beach (CSULB; also known as Long Beach State, Cal State Long Beach, LBSU, or The Beach) is the third largest campus of the 23 school California State University system (CSU) and one of the largest universities in the state of California by enrollment, its student body numbering 36,822 for the Fall 2014 semester. As of Fall 2014, the school had 2,283 total faculty, with 36.7 percent of those faculty on the tenure track. With 5,286 grad students, the university enrolls one of the largest graduate student populations across the CSU and in the state of California alone. The university is located in the Los Altos neighborhood of Long Beach at the southeastern coastal tip of Los Angeles County, less than one mile from the border with Orange County. The university offers 137 different Bachelor's degrees, 92 types of Master's degrees, 5 Doctoral degrees including two Doctor of Education, a Ph.D in Engineering, a Doctor of Physical Therapy and Doctor of Nursing Practice, as well as 29 different teaching credentials.

Long Beach State is one of the West Coast's top universities in student body racial diversity, being named the 5th most diverse university in the West by U.S. News & World Report. It is also home to the largest publicly funded art school west of the Mississippi. The university currently operates with one of the lowest student fees in the country at US$6,738 per year for full-time students having California residence. As a result, CSULB has been recognized repeatedly as one of "America's Best Value Colleges" by the Princeton Review.

History

The College was established in 1949 by California Governor Earl Warren, to serve the rapidly expanding post-World War II population of Orange and Southern Los Angeles counties. Since then, CSULB has grown to become one of the state's largest universities.

The institution was first named as Los Angeles-Orange County State College. Peter Victor Peterson was its first president. It offered 25 courses, taught by 13 faculty members, in two apartment buildings at 5381 Anaheim Road in Long Beach. In June 1950, the citizens of Long Beach voted overwhelmingly to purchase 322 acres (130 ha) as a permanent campus for the college, then known as Long Beach State College. The purchase price was nearly $1,000,000. Student enrollment grew rapidly in this new, permanent location.

Carl W. McIntosh was named the college's second president in 1959. While McIntosh was president, the school grew tremendously. Enrollment surged from about 10,000 to more than 30,000, and he rapidly expanded and revamped the curriculum. McIntosh tripled the number of faculty and constructed 30 new buildings. Although the 1960s were a period of deep unrest on American college campuses, McIntosh's collegial governing style, gentle and quite demeanor, and willingness to permit protest on campus (so long as it remained quiet and peaceful) helped keep Long Beach State College relatively quiet throughout the period. In 1964, LBSC changed its name to California State College at Long Beach. In 1967, the California state legislature revamped the state college system. It changed its name in 1968 to California State College, Long Beach, as part of these changes and began to be much more closely integrated into the California State College system.

In 1965, CSCLB hosted the first International Sculpture Symposium to be held in the United States and the first such symposium to be held at a college or university. Six sculptors from abroad and two from the United States created many of the monumental sculptures present on the campus. The event received national media attention from newspapers around the country, including the New York Times, Los Angeles Times Magazine, Art in America and a six-page co ... [more on wikipedia]

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "California State University-Long Beach", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0

California State University Details

California State University Details
detail value
stateCalifornia
conferenceBig West Conference
publicPublic
scores1515/1010/23
levelAverage
rank[318
overall ROI rank[387
sizelarge
undergrads31643
grads5166
price33884
drop36
stem27
research0
scores validTrue
Common Questions...

What are the academic rankings for California State University-Long Beach?

1. number 318 for Academics.

2. number 387 for ROI (Return on Investment).

What universities are similar to California State University-Long Beach?

1. Texas Tech University

2. San Diego State University

3. San Jose State University

4. Florida Atlantic University

5. Georgia State University

6. Oregon State University

7. Washington State University


National Academic Rankings

(summary of all ranking placements)

California State University National Academic Rankings

California State University National Academic Rankings
category rank scores difficulty smartest brainpower faculty research salary ROI overall ROI
Big West Conference787666656
West Coast Region427868202228265043
State of California285243171820182929
Top Ten Big West Conference787666656


Peer Universities / Similar Universities

(mathematically similar student body, size, academics, stem, salary... etc)

California State University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to California State University

California State University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to California State University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
92.70
Texas Tech UniversityTexasBig Twelve ConferencePublicAverage176104
92.65
San Diego State UniversityCaliforniaMountain West ConferencePublicAverage183218
92.28
San Jose State UniversityCaliforniaMountain West ConferencePublicAverage386389
92.03
Florida Atlantic UniversityFloridaConference USAPublicAverage305303
92.00
Georgia State UniversityGeorgiaSun Belt ConferencePublicAverage253230
91.70
Oregon State UniversityOregonPacific 12 ConferencePublicAverage152202
91.70
Washington State UniversityWashingtonPacific 12 ConferencePublicAverage189193
91.42
West Virginia UniversityWest VirginiaBig Twelve ConferencePublicAverage320192
91.35
East Carolina UniversityNorth CarolinaAmerican Athletic ConferencePublicAverage312325
91.35
University of North Carolina at CharlotteNorth CarolinaDivision I-AA Independents / C...PublicAverage292207
91.26
University of New MexicoNew MexicoMountain West ConferencePublicAverage265153
86.40
University of ArizonaArizonaPacific 12 ConferencePublicAverage12486
86.09
Iowa State UniversityIowaBig Twelve ConferencePublicAboveAverage12971
85.92
California State University-NorthridgeCaliforniaBig West ConferencePublicBelowAverage459474
85.76
Brigham Young University-IdahoIdahoNo Conference AffiliationPrivateAverage312164
85.60
University of Colorado BoulderColoradoPacific 12 ConferencePublicAboveAverage7959
85.46
San Francisco State UniversityCaliforniaCalifornia Collegiate Athletic...PublicBelowAverage428458
85.44
Michigan State UniversityMichiganBig Ten ConferencePublicAverage11174
85.39
Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical CollegeLouisianaSoutheastern ConferencePublicAboveAverage14888
85.20
Pennsylvania State UniversityPennsylvaniaBig Ten ConferencePublicAboveAverage5384
85.16
University of California-IrvineCaliforniaBig West ConferencePublicAboveAverage108162
85.14
Florida International UniversityFloridaConference USAPublicAverage163170
85.04
University of UtahUtahPacific 12 ConferencePublicAboveAverage14286
85.01
University of Nevada-Las VegasNevadaMountain West ConferencePublicBelowAverage421449
84.98
Virginia Commonwealth UniversityVirginiaAtlantic 10 ConferencePublicAboveAverage178207
84.97
Colorado State University-Fort CollinsColoradoMountain West ConferencePublicAboveAverage143139
84.97
Kennesaw State UniversityGeorgiaAtlantic Sun ConferencePublicAverage290291
84.78
University of Wisconsin-MilwaukeeWisconsinHorizon LeaguePublicBelowAverage420367
84.75
Indiana University-Purdue University-IndianapolisIndianaThe Summit LeaguePublicAverage427342
84.69
University of Massachusetts-AmherstMassachusettsMid - American Conference / At...PublicAboveAverage88144
84.68
University of KentuckyKentuckySoutheastern ConferencePublicAboveAverage159130
84.41
Oklahoma State UniversityOklahomaBig Twelve ConferencePublicAverage182124
84.28
Kansas State UniversityKansasBig Twelve ConferencePublicAverage249168
84.24
Old Dominion UniversityVirginiaConference USAPublicAverage356368
84.15
University of Akron Main CampusOhioMid American ConferencePublicAverage331251
83.86
Eastern Michigan UniversityMichiganMid American ConferencePublicAverage445385
83.60
University of MemphisTennesseeAmerican Athletic ConferencePublicAverage359314
83.57
Oakland UniversityMichiganHorizon LeaguePublicAverage417270
83.39
University of ToledoOhioMid American ConferencePublicAverage405285
83.36
University of LouisvilleKentuckyAtlantic Coast ConferencePublicAverage258224
83.25
Northern Illinois UniversityIllinoisMid American ConferencePublicAverage435289
82.98
University of Hawaii at ManoaHawaiiMountain West Conference / Big...PublicAverage204245
82.49
Cleveland State UniversityOhioHorizon LeaguePublicAverage440299
81.56
Rutgers University-NewarkNew JerseyNew Jersey Athletic ConferencePublicAverage371392
79.74
Florida State UniversityFloridaAtlantic Coast ConferencePublicAboveAverage76104
79.44
Rutgers University-New BrunswickNew JerseyBig Ten ConferencePublicAboveAverage56115
78.97
California State University-SacramentoCaliforniaBig Sky ConferencePublicBelowAverage453472
78.61
Arizona State University-TempeArizonaPacific 12 ConferencePublicAboveAverage10182
78.45
University of CincinnatiOhioAmerican Athletic ConferencePublicAboveAverage202106
78.04
George Mason UniversityVirginiaAtlantic 10 ConferencePublicAboveAverage156143


Academic Peer Universities / Similar Academics

(mathematically similar academics)

California State University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to California State University

California State University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to California State University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
97.00
Big West Conference (Low)-Big West Conference-Conf-Average-385
96.06
West Virginia UniversityWest VirginiaBig Twelve ConferencePublicAverage320192
89.72
Atlantic 10 Conference (Low)-Atlantic 10 Conference-Conf-AboveAverage-336
89.18
Lawrence Technological UniversityMichiganWolverine - Hoosier Athletic ConfPrivateAboveAverage319146
89.10
West Chester University of PennsylvaniaPennsylvaniaPennsylvania State Athletic Co...PublicAboveAverage315361
83.40
Soka University of AmericaCaliforniaNo Conference AffiliationPrivateAboveAverage317447
83.11
Eureka CollegeIllinoisUpper Midwest Athletic Confere...PrivateAboveAverage316427
83.08
University of Minnesota-MorrisMinnesotaUpper Midwest Athletic ConferencePublicAboveAverage321161
82.32
Allegheny CollegePennsylvaniaNorth Coast Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage322411
81.59
Covenant CollegeGeorgiaUSA South Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage322432