Penn State has already received many high academic rankings this year. The latest, awarded by the highly respected U.S. News & World Report, is no exception.

U.S. News rated Penn State as the highest national university that offers rolling admissions, according to data reported by 270 ranked schools in a survey. Of those 270 schools, 79 offer rolling admissions.

Universities such as Penn State that offer rolling admissions make decisions as applications are received, so students often learn whether they are accepted in as little as four to six weeks. This makes senior year a little easier for students who receive acceptance letters during the fall, while others are forced to wait until late in the spring.

Tuesday’s announcement comes soon after Penn State was ranked the 37th university in the world. Other Big Ten schools within the top ten for rolling admissions are Purdue University, University of Minnesota, and Michigan State University.

The top 10 ranking is below:

1. Penn State
2. University of Pittsburgh
3. Purdue University
4. Rutgers and University of Minnesota (tie)
5. Michigan State University
6. Baylor University
7. Stony Brook University
8. SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
9. University of Alabama
10. University of Tulsa

The rankings are determined using data submited by each school on up to 16 factors of academic success. Each factor is assigned a weight that reflects U.S. News’s judgment about how much a measure matters. The colleges and universities in each category are then ranked against peers, based on composite weighted score.

The factors are listed below:

• Acceptance rate
• Average alumni giving rate
• Average freshman retention rate
• Average graduation rate
• Class size, 1-19 students
• Class size, 50-plus students
• Expenditures per student
• Faculty compensation
• Faculty with Ph.Ds or terminal degree
• Graduation rate performance
• High school class standing
• High school counselor rating score
• Peer assessment
• Proportion of full-time faculty
• SAT/ACT scores
• Student-faculty ratio

While no system is perfect, U.S. News & World Report is widely viewed as the most respected source for college rankings. With this in mind, it’s great to see Penn State ranked at the top of this list.