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

Pepperdine University

2016 University Academic Rankings
Pepperdine University is an American private, not-for-profit, coeducational research university affiliated with the Churches of Christ. The university's 830-acre (340 ha) campus overlooking the Pacific Ocean in unincorporated Los Angeles County, California, United States, near Malibu is the location for Seaver College, the School of Law, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, the Graziadio School of Business and Management, and the School of Public Policy.

Pepperdine was ranked 52nd among "National Universities", 25th among Best Value Schools, and 65th among Law Schools by U.S. News & World Report's 2016 rankings. The university was also ranked 128th in America's Best Colleges by Forbes.

Courses are taught at the main campus, six graduate campuses in southern California, and at international campuses in Germany, England, Italy, China, Switzerland and Argentina. The Ed.D. program in Organizational leadership, (EDOL) has held international courses in China, Argentina, Chile, Belize, Costa Rica, and India.

History | Early years

In February 1937, against the backdrop of the Great Depression, George Pepperdine founded the university as a Christian liberal arts college in the city of Los Angeles. On September 21, 1937, 167 new students from 22 different states and two other countries entered classes on a newly built campus on 34 acres (14 ha) at West 79th Street and South Vermont Avenue in the Vermont Knolls neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles, referred to later as the Vermont Avenue campus. By April 6, 1938, George Pepperdine College was fully accredited by the Northwest Association.

Pepperdine had built a fortune founding and developing the Western Auto Supply Company, which he started with a $5 investment, but his prosperity led to his greater ambition to discover "how humanity can be helped most with the means entrusted to care. considered it wrong to build up a great fortune and use it selfishly." Mr. Pepperdine voiced his twofold objective for the college that bore his name, "First, we want to provide first-class, fully accredited academic training in the liberal arts ... Secondly, we are especially dedicated to a greater goal-that of building in the student a Christ-like life, a love for the church, and a passion for the souls of mankind."

Move to Malibu

By the 1960s, the young college faced serious problems. The area around the Vermont Avenue campus developed issues with crime and urban decay; tensions also arose due to the Civil Rights Movement and attempts to circumvent it such as California Proposition 14, which challenged federal fair housing laws. The situation exploded in the 1965 Watts Riots. In 1969 activists in the Watts area threatened to burn down the campus; however, they were talked out of it after all-night negotiations by then-President M. Norvel Young. In addition, the Vermont Avenue campus was running out of room to expand.

In 1967, the school began planning to move the undergraduate campus and a committee was formed to look at alternative locations, including sites in Valencia, Orange County, Ventura County and Westlake Village. Pepperdine favored the Westlake Village location until the Adamson-Rindge family, who owned hundreds of acres near Malibu, offered 138 acres (56 ha) of land. Despite concerns over building costs on the mountainous site, the school decided to move forward based on its prime location and potential for raising donations. Construction began on April 13, 1971 and the new campus opened for student enrollment in September 1972. The campus and many of its buildings were planned by Los Angeles-based architect and urban planner William Pereira.

The old campus was sold to Crenshaw Christian Center, whose minister, Frederick K.C. Price, then oversaw cons ... [more on wikipedia]

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

Pepperdine University Details

Pepperdine University Details
detail value
stateCalifornia
conferenceWest Coast Conference
publicPrivate
scores1855/1237/28
levelGood
rank[212
overall ROI rank[231
sizesmall
undergrads3451
grads3966
price63482
drop18
stem5
research2
scores validTrue
Common Questions...

What are the academic rankings for Pepperdine University?

1. number 212 for Academics.

2. number 231 for ROI (Return on Investment).

What universities are similar to Pepperdine University?

1. Bentley University

2. American University

3. Pratt Institute-Main

4. University of Northwestern-St Paul

5. Saint Mary's College of California

6. Loyola University New Orleans

7. Biola University


National Academic Rankings

(summary of all ranking placements)

Pepperdine University National Academic Rankings

Pepperdine University National Academic Rankings
category rank scores difficulty smartest brainpower faculty research salary ROI overall ROI
Top250212128170195218153158213231
West Coast Conference536655575
West Coast Region251724364324244226
State of California211417283216162417
Top Ten Top250212128170195218153158213231
Top Ten West Coast Conference536655575


Peer Universities / Similar Universities

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

Pepperdine University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to Pepperdine University

Pepperdine University Peer Universities, Similar Universities to Pepperdine University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
85.40
Bentley UniversityMassachusettsNortheast 10 ConferencePrivateGood232199
82.99
American UniversityWashington DCPatriot LeaguePrivateGood113180
79.67
Pratt Institute-MainNew YorkNo Conference AffiliationPrivateAboveAverage396460
79.56
University of Northwestern-St PaulMinnesotaUpper Midwest Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage412246
79.05
Saint Mary's College of CaliforniaCaliforniaWest Coast ConferencePrivateAboveAverage461440
78.73
Loyola University New OrleansLouisianaSouthern States Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage411391
78.59
Biola UniversityCaliforniaGolden State Athletic ConferencePrivateAboveAverage397467
78.31
Xavier UniversityOhioBig East ConferencePrivateAboveAverage436336
77.51
Saint Joseph's UniversityPennsylvaniaAtlantic 10 ConferencePrivateAboveAverage398372
77.00
Chapman UniversityCaliforniaSouthern California Intercoll ...PrivateGood208242
76.00
Fordham UniversityNew YorkPatriot League / Atlantic 10 C...PrivateGood109167
72.70
Champlain CollegeVermontNo Conference AffiliationPrivateAboveAverage475497
72.65
Illinois Institute of TechnologyIllinoisDivision III IndependentsPrivateGood12255
71.22
North Greenville UniversitySouth CarolinaDivision II Independents / Con...PrivateAboveAverage477492
70.61
Belmont UniversityTennesseeOhio Valley ConferencePrivateAboveAverage246291
69.33
Texas Christian UniversityTexasBig Twelve ConferencePrivateAboveAverage214181
67.59
New York UniversityNew YorkUniversity Athletic AssociationPrivateExcellent35101
66.62
University of TulsaOklahomaAmerican Athletic ConferencePrivateGood13975


Academic Peer Universities / Similar Academics

(mathematically similar academics)

Pepperdine University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to Pepperdine University

Pepperdine University Academic Peer Universities, Similar Academic Universities to Pepperdine University
match image university state conference public level rank overall ROI
98.69
Trinity UniversityTexasSouthern Collegiate Athletic C...PrivateGood212170
97.40
Skidmore CollegeNew YorkUpstate Collegiate Athletic As...PrivateGood210220
96.30
Milwaukee School of EngineeringWisconsinNorthern Athletics Collegiate ...PrivateGood184102
95.93
Trinity CollegeConnecticutNew England Small College Ath ConfPrivateGood215225
94.41
Dickinson CollegePennsylvaniaCentennial ConferencePrivateExcellent187201
94.39
Chapman UniversityCaliforniaSouthern California Intercoll ...PrivateGood208242
93.47
Lewis & Clark CollegeOregonNorthwest ConferencePrivateExcellent179221
91.91
Texas Christian UniversityTexasBig Twelve ConferencePrivateAboveAverage214181
91.67
Truman State UniversityMissouriGreat Lakes Valley ConferencePublicAboveAverage208189
91.09
Loyola Marymount UniversityCaliforniaWest Coast ConferencePrivateAboveAverage218233
90.77
Clarkson UniversityNew YorkUpstate Collegiate Athletic As...PrivateAboveAverage211187
90.45
Loyola University ChicagoIllinoisMissouri Valley ConferencePrivateAboveAverage228206
90.39
College of CharlestonSouth CarolinaColonial Athletic AssociationPublicAboveAverage219233
89.69
University of San FranciscoCaliforniaWest Coast ConferencePrivateAboveAverage226241
83.22
The University of AlabamaAlabamaSoutheastern ConferencePublicAboveAverage175112
80.36
Ohio UniversityOhioMid American ConferencePublicAverage215174