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

Kettering University

2016 University Academic Rankings
Kettering University ranked 14th nationally among non-Ph.D.-granting engineering universities and fourth nationally among mechanical engineering programs in the 2015 U.S. News and World Report ‘Best Colleges' edition. Kettering ranked 12th nationally and first in the Midwest and Michigan in Return on Investment in PayScale.com's 2015 Return on Investment Rankings. PayScale.com also ranked Kettering 15th nationally and first in Michigan in its 2014 Salary Potential rankings. A 2015 CNN Money article examining the top private colleges in the country in return on investment ranked Kettering 10th, noting that Kettering is sending graduates “out into the world with the skills employers are looking for." An article in the 2014 issue of Automobile Magazine listed Kettering University among five universities nationwide that students looking to break into the auto industry should attend.

Kettering University undergraduate students are required to complete at least five co-op terms to graduate. Students gain paid work experience in a variety of industries with Kettering's more than 550 corporate partners, including some of the world's top Fortune 500 companies, and graduate with more than two years of professional experience accompanying their degree.

Kettering University is named after inventor and former head of research for General Motors Charles Kettering. Along with his distinguished career that included his development of the automatic cash register, automobile self-starter, and research on magnetism and solar energy, Kettering was also a proponent of cooperative education that included professional experience to supplement instruction in classrooms and labs. Kettering University's belief in experiential education descends from Charles Kettering's foundational belief in the power of combining theory with practice.

History | Establishment

Originally founded as The School of Automotive Trades by Albert Sobey under the direction of the Industrial Fellowship of Flint on October 20, 1919, Kettering University has a long legacy with the automotive industry. The university became known as the Flint Institute of Technology in 1923 before being acquired by General Motors in 1926, becoming the General Motors Institute of Technology and eventually the General Motors Institute in 1932.

Sometimes referred to as the “West Point of industry," GMI focused on creating business and industry leaders through the unique co-op model (following the development of this program at the University of Cincinnati in 1907). GMI also pioneered freshmen level manufacturing courses (Production Processes I & II), and automotive degree specialties. A fifth-year thesis requirement was added in 1945, along with the ability to grant degrees. The first bachelor's degree was awarded on August 23, 1946. The co-op program required applicants to find a GM division to be their sponsor. Work and school were mixed in six-week rotations, dividing the student body into A-section and B-section. At any given time, when A-section was in school, B-section was at work. After six weeks, B-section would go back to school and so on. This resulted in students moving eight times per year and a 48-week school/work year. Because General Motors used the school to train its engineers, tuition was partially subsidized. In June 1979 (the Class of 1984) co-op rotations were expanded to twelve weeks.

Split from GM

After GM reduced operations in Flint, the company and the university separated on July 1, 1982. The name of the institution became "GMI Engineering & Management Institute" and the letters "GMI" were retained to allow easy identification with the old General Motors Institute. The university began charging full tuition as an independent private university. The university kept the cooperative education model, expand ... [more on wikipedia]

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

Kettering University Details

Kettering University Details
detail value
stateMichigan
conferenceNo Conference Affiliation
publicPrivate
scores1720/1147/26
levelAboveAverage
rank[332
overall ROI rank[139
sizesmall
undergrads1732
grads347
price52917
drop37
stem100
research0
scores validTrue
Common Questions...

What are the academic rankings for Kettering University?

1. number 332 for Academics.

2. number 139 for ROI (Return on Investment).

What universities are similar to Kettering University?

1. SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

2. South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

3. New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology

4. Montana Tech of the University of Montana

5. Saint Martin's University

6. Milwaukee School of Engineering

7. Lawrence Technological University


National Academic Rankings

(summary of all ranking placements)

Kettering University National Academic Rankings

Kettering University National Academic Rankings
category rank scores difficulty smartest brainpower faculty research salary ROI overall ROI
Stem High44332949483232427
Mid West Region695321100964242236
State of Michigan117324219914
Top Ten State of Michigan107310104414


Peer Universities / Similar Universities

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

Kettering University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to Kettering University

Kettering University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to Kettering University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
93.32
SUNY College of Environmental Science and ForestryNew YorkNo Conference AffiliationPublicAboveAverage229244
91.34
South Dakota School of Mines and TechnologySouth DakotaGreat Northwest Athletic ConferencePublicAboveAverage281111
86.29
New Mexico Institute of Mining and TechnologyNew MexicoNo Conference AffiliationPublicGood18093
86.11
Montana Tech of the University of MontanaMontanaFrontier ConferencePublicAboveAverage399203
78.94
Saint Martin's UniversityWashingtonGreat Northwest Athletic ConferencePrivateAverage-1-1
77.78
Milwaukee School of EngineeringWisconsinNorthern Athletics Collegiate ...PrivateGood184102
77.46
Lawrence Technological UniversityMichiganWolverine - Hoosier Athletic ConfPrivateAboveAverage319146
76.89
Clarkson UniversityNew YorkUpstate Collegiate Athletic As...PrivateAboveAverage211187
76.51
Florida Institute of TechnologyFloridaGulf South Conference / Sunshi...PrivateAboveAverage260130
76.28
Drury UniversityMissouriGreat Lakes Valley ConferencePrivateAboveAverage295378
75.39
University of Alabama in HuntsvilleAlabamaGulf South ConferencePublicAboveAverage181103
75.37
Michigan Technological UniversityMichiganGreat Lakes Intercollegiate At...PublicAboveAverage14658
75.27
Southern Polytechnic State UniversityGeorgiaNo Conference AffiliationPublicAboveAverage267128
74.86
New Jersey Institute of TechnologyNew JerseyIndependent Northeast RegionPublicAboveAverage195185
74.17
University of Missouri-St LouisMissouriGreat Lakes Valley ConferencePublicAboveAverage242211
73.00
Wagner CollegeNew YorkNortheast ConferencePrivateAboveAverage385412
71.80
LeTourneau UniversityTexasAmerican Southwest ConferencePrivateAboveAverage328173
70.39
Illinois Institute of TechnologyIllinoisDivision III IndependentsPrivateGood12255
70.12
United States Coast Guard AcademyConnecticutNew England Football Conferenc...PublicGood18597
69.26
Colorado School of MinesColoradoRocky Mountain Athletic ConferencePublicGood8424
69.12
Nova Southeastern UniversityFloridaSunshine State ConferencePrivateAverage488397
68.44
Missouri University of Science and TechnologyMissouriGreat Lakes Valley ConferencePublicGood10532
68.32
Polytechnic Institute of New York UniversityNew YorkNo Reported AffiliationPrivateGood7672
67.56
CUNY City CollegeNew YorkCity University of New York At...PublicAverage293347
67.30
Wayne State UniversityMichiganGreat Lakes Intercollegiate At...PublicAverage414286
66.63
Gordon CollegeMassachusettsCommonwealth Coast ConferencePrivateAboveAverage394475


Academic Peer Universities / Similar Academics

(mathematically similar academics)

Kettering University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to Kettering University

Kettering University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to Kettering University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
99.12
Ohio Northern UniversityOhioOhio Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage332170
97.01
Centennial Conference (Low)-Centennial Conference-Conf-AboveAverage-415
96.53
Georgia College and State UniversityGeorgiaPeach Belt ConferencePublicAboveAverage334352
95.14
LeTourneau UniversityTexasAmerican Southwest ConferencePrivateAboveAverage328173
95.01
Saint Michael's CollegeVermontNortheast 10 ConferencePrivateAboveAverage329452
94.85
South Dakota School of Mines and TechnologySouth DakotaGreat Northwest Athletic ConferencePublicAboveAverage281111
94.45
Maryland Institute College of ArtMarylandNo Conference AffiliationPrivateAboveAverage335440
93.78
Southern Athletic Association (Average)-Southern Athletic Association-Conf-AboveAverage-408
93.15
Wentworth Institute of TechnologyMassachusettsCommonwealth Coast ConferencePrivateAverage348352
92.69
University of Michigan-DearbornMichiganWolverine - Hoosier Athletic ConfPublicAboveAverage312185
91.35
University of Illinois at SpringfieldIllinoisGreat Lakes Valley ConferencePublicAverage403397
91.17
Regis UniversityColoradoRocky Mountain Athletic ConferencePrivateAverage360303
90.15
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Daytona BeachFloridaFlorida Sun ConferencePrivateAverage401210
90.14
University of Akron Main CampusOhioMid American ConferencePublicAverage331251
89.48
Southern Illinois University-CarbondaleIllinoisMissouri Valley ConferencePublicAverage368278
86.31
The University of Texas at San AntonioTexasConference USAPublicAverage330180
86.10
Big Sky Conference (Low)-Big Sky Conference-Conf-Average-245
85.39
Northern Arizona UniversityArizonaBig Sky ConferencePublicAverage336333
84.33
Wayne State UniversityMichiganGreat Lakes Intercollegiate At...PublicAverage414286