Media Contact: Nicole Funaro, nicole.funaro@fairfield.edu, 203-254-4000 x3498

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (September 5, 2019) — Fairfield University has once again been ranked in the Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Ed’s annual college ranking. Placing in the top 200 out of 801 colleges and universities included in the list, Fairfield ranked among the top 25% of schools nationwide.

The WSJ/Times Higher Ed ranking is based on over 170,000 current student voices and measures student success and learning. The schools are graded on performance indicators such as resources, which measures a college’s capacity to effectively deliver teaching and accounts for 30% of a school’s score; engagement, which measures a college’s ability to engage with its students and accounts for 20% of a school’s score; outcomes, which measures a college’s ability to generate good and appropriate student outputs and accounts for 40% of a school’s score; and environment, which considers whether or not a college provides a good learning environment for all students and accounts for 10% of a school’s overall ranking.

Fairfield also placed high in two other categories, ranking No. 157 out of 801 in the outcomes category and placing in the top 20% of the schools included in this year’s list, while also earning the No. 76 spot in the engagement category and placing in the top 10% schools this year.

Additionally, survey results indicate a strong sense of commitment and value from students who attend Fairfield: 8.9 out of 10 students responding to the survey said they would still choose to attend Fairfield if they could start their college selection process over, while 8.7 out of 10 respondents said they felt Fairfield provided an environment where they felt they are surrounded by exceptional students who “inspire” and “motivate” them. Finally, 8.5 out of 10 responses said they believed Fairfield is worth the cost of tuition.

Other metrics considered in the ranking include a consideration of debt after graduation, as well as graduation rate. Data informing the rankings comes from sources including “the US government (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS); the US Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA); the College Scorecard, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA); the THE US Student Survey; the THE Academic Survey; and the Elsevier bibliometric dataset.”

For more information on Fairfield rankings, visit fairfield.edu/rankings.

Posted On: September 5, 2019

Volume: 52 Number: 20

Fairfield University is a modern, Jesuit University, rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students from 36 states, 47 foreign countries, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are enrolled in the University’s five schools.  In the spirit of rigorous and sympathetic inquiry into all dimensions of human experience, Fairfield welcomes students from diverse backgrounds to share ideas and engage in open conversations. The University is located in the heart of a region where the future takes shape, on a stunning campus on the Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City.