West Hartford Ranked Among Top U.S. Cities with the Most Doctoral Degree Holders

West Hartford was ranked by online-phd-programs.org as one of the top U.S. cities with the most doctoral degree holders, coming in at No. 46.

The website used the following methodology in determining its rankings:

The core source of information for the ranking of this article was City-Data.com – specifically its list of the “Top 101 cities with the most people having Doctorate degrees” in American urban centers with populations of 50,000 or more.

However, the original list appears to contain figures from the 2000 U.S. Census, so it is in need of updating. With this in mind, to compile our ranking we used www.city-data.com’s current “Educational Attainment” statistics, relating to 2012, from the individual cities’ pages (see, for example, Palo Alto). These graphs show the percentage of each city’s inhabitants who were in possession of a doctoral degree during said year. We also utilized 2012 population estimates – or 2010 statistics where necessary – from the U.S. Census Bureau. Our list now represents an up-to-date look at the 50 U.S. cities with populations of 50,000 or greater that feature the highest percentage of doctorate holders.

The site had the following to say about West Hartford in its ranking:

The appeal of West Hartford, Connecticut for doctorate holders perhaps lies as much in the town’s location and sense of community as it does in the area’s academic opportunities. The University of Hartford employs much of the city’s population of 63,268 – the figure as of 2010 – although it is a private school with only a limited doctoral program. West Hartford itself, however, was included among the “Coolest Suburbs Worth a Visit” list compiled by Travel + Leisure in 2010. That year it also made Kiplinger’s “10 Best Cities for the Next Decade” and CNNMoney.com’s “Top 100 Places to Live,” with Kiplinger commenting that the area is “an idyllic place to raise a family” and that “the town couldn’t be better situated.” As of 2012, 3.7 percent of West Hartford’s inhabitants held doctoral degrees.

Read the full article and rankings here.

(Pictured: Blue Back Square in West Hartford, image via Wikimedia Commons)

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