University Of South Florida Ranks Among Best Colleges In Florida

FLORIDA — Niche just published its 2022 Best Colleges rankings, and this year the University of South Florida is No. 4 on Best Colleges in Florida.

2022 Best Colleges in Florida

1. University of Florida
2. University of Miami
3. Florida State University
4. University of South Florida
5. University of Central Florida

Niche, the leading platform connecting students and families with colleges and schools, updated data for 4,136 colleges nationwide.

To create the college rankings, Niche combined data from sources such as the U.S. Department of Education with user input — reviews and ratings from current students, alumni, and parents — in a thorough analysis of factors including academics, campus and value for the financial investment, to name a few.

The most significant change made to the methodology this year was de-emphasizing the importance of SAT and ACT scores. Niche made the decision for several reasons: acknowledgement of socioeconomic and racial disparities perpetuated by standardized tests, challenges making appointments to test in-person due to COVID-19, and an increasing number of institutions adopting test-optional policies.

As of the 2022 Best Colleges rankings release, the weight for any factor that considers test scores has been decreased by 50 percent. Niche chose to reduce instead of eliminate the factors because, despite the nearly 1,000 institutions that are test-optional or test-blind for the upcoming admissions year, many still require test scores and the future of standardized testing remains unclear.

“Our team recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic, especially as new variants such as the delta variant arise, will continue to have an outsize impact on the college admissions process this year,” says Luke Skurman, CEO and founder of Niche. “We wanted to make sure our 2022 rankings reflect the current reality.”

Students interested in colleges not currently requiring SAT and ACT scores will find use in the Best Test Optional Colleges ranking. Niche’s Your Best Fit tool is another way for students to make the rankings their own — registered users can input preferences to receive a completely personalized ranking that is generated based on which factors they consider most important.

2022 Best Colleges in America:

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2. Harvard University
3. Stanford University
4. Yale University
5. Princeton University

“As we’ve seen the higher ed industry weather enormous change, it has been a top priority of ours to remain a steadfast, reliable resource for students and their families searching for their best fit college,” said Skurman. “Our 2022 college rankings will provide unique and comprehensive insights into top-notch institutions across the country. With ongoing uncertainty surrounding everyday life and the college experience in particular, we’re honored to continue to serve our millions of users at every step of the admissions process.”

Niche’s 2022 college rankings include categories for top public universities, best liberal arts colleges, best value colleges, and more. Searchers can also view the best colleges by state, metro area or county, and by major.

For the full list of 2022 Best Colleges rankings, click here.