University Times

Pitt ranks among the top U.S. research universities, according to the 2010 report of the Center for Measuring University Performance released last week.

In preparing the report — “The Top American Research Universities: 2010 Annual Report” — the center considers the most recent publicly available data and relies heavily on the insights of its advisory board and the recommendations of colleagues throughout the country.

The 2010 report includes only those  institutions  with  at  least $40 million in research expenditures in fiscal year 2008; 163 such institutions — 116 public and 47 private — met the criteria. According to the report authors, these 163 schools account for about 90 percent of all reported academic federal research expenditures.

The listing identifies 53 institutions (26 private and 27 public) that rank in the top 25 nationally on at least one of nine measures related to financial support, faculty or students.

Pitt ranked in the top 25 research universities nationwide in four of the nine measures: No. 12 in federal research dollars (2008 figures), with $456.2 million; No. 12 in postdoctoral appointees (2008 figures), with 830; No. 13 in faculty awards (2009 figures), with 33, and No. 16 in total research dollars (2008 figures), with more than $595.6 million.

Pitt ranked in the top 26-50 in three measures: No. 30 in endowment assets (2009 figures) with more than $1.8 billion; No. 33 in doctorates granted (2009 figures) with 448, and No. 40 in National Academy members (2009 figures) with 26.

In the other two measures, Pitt’s national rank was No. 58 in annual giving (2009 figures) with more than $100.6 million, and No. 125 (2008 figures) for SAT or ACT range (Pitt’s median of its 25th-75th percentile scores was 570-670 verbal; 580-670 quantitative).

Four institutions — Columbia, MIT, Penn and Stanford — were ranked in the top 25 in all nine measures.

The report also ranked public and private institutions separately, identifying 39 public institutions that rank in the top 25 among all publics in at least one of the nine measures.

Among public research institutions, Pitt ranked in the top 25 in eight measures: No. 6 in postdoctoral appointees; No. 7 in federal research; No. 7 in faculty awards; No. 9 in endowment assets; No. 11 in total research; No. 21 in National Academy members; No. 23 in doctorates granted, and No. 23 in SAT/ACT range.

Pitt ranked No. 31 nationally in the annual giving measure among public universities.

Joining Pitt in the group of public institutions with top 25 ranking in eight measures were Georgia Tech, Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State and Washington.

According to the report’s authors, “The Center for Measuring University Performance produces these tables not to create a ranking … but rather to analyze the characteristics that identify successful research universities and identify benchmarks for university improvement. …

“We believe that university performance does not fall along a linear, one-dimensional ranking hierarchy. … Rather, we find that research universities fall into groups, with similar if not identical performance on a variety of dimensions. If an institution is among the top 25 on all of the measures we identify as reliable and appropriate, then these institutions are all first rate even if they may have different levels of performance on the various measures.”

Current and previous years’ report data, dating to 2000 when the report was first released, are available at http://mup.asu.edu.

(For last year’s Pitt rankings, see May 13, 2010, University Times.)

—Peter Hart