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America's Most Connected Campuses
foghorn666 writes "Forbes and the Princeton Review have posted their list of America's Most Connected Campuses, which measures the technological capabilities of the country's 357 top colleges and universities. They're looking at infrastructure stuff like whether wireless networks are available, if you can register for classes online, and so on - not really curriculum. But the results are interesting, and the winner not a huge surprise: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute."
RPI's not a huge surprise? I expected MIT at number one... not below the top 25. Same for many others. WTF?
Mencken had it right. So glad that's old news.
That every year I hear the rankings of Top 10 party schools in Time, Newsweek, and other mainstream media outlets. I never hear a thing about campus rankings on issues that actually matter unless I turn to (relatively) obscure news sources like /.
This one gang kept wanting me to join cause I'm pretty good with a bo staff.
"...which measures the technological capabilities of the country's 357 top colleges and universities."
But where's the survey measuring the technological capabilities of the students?
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120 chairs?! What the hell am I supposed to do with 120 chairs...?
With as much emphasis as the survey put on wireless networking, I'd think good security would be one of the most important factors in a well-wired campus.
It's sad that something this high-profile apparently dismisses the importance of network security.
There's a Mercedes gap too. I want one and can't afford one, but it's not government's job to do anything about it.
And then once I got on, the slowdown was that our new superfast server (danube, IIRC) was bogged down running poorly written interpreted, recursive, memory-hogging programs by 500+ students all trying to get in under the wire.
Sigh. The good old days.
The CB App. What's your 20?
A major portion of their analysis seems to be the ratio of students to computers, but that is rather unfair: they are only counting campus-owned computers, not the ones students bring with them. For example: my alma matter, the University of Washington, has two EXCELLENT, large computer labs, plus others scattered about the various buildings. They also have Wi-Fi network s (though not campus-wide). But still, the majority of students bring their own computers (wether laptops they carry or desktops in their dorms). And ya know what, it didn't even make the list! This is bull-crap!
William George
I read this on some IRC channel a couple'a years ago...
A: this school i'm trying to apply for is asking me all these stupid questions. like "why do you want to attend our school?"
B: tell them 'cuz you got a phat pipe that i can use to download porn, warez and mp3s.
This sig contains repetition and redundancy.
sadly, the most connected campus seems to be fairly irresponsible with their student data. 3 years ago, i did a search for a friend who went there, and got a hit on a page including student names matched with Social Security numbers and a test score. We sent an email to the IT guys there... a year later, I did it again- the page was still up, so I told them again. Out of curiosity, I just did the same search, and got the same list. How would you feel knowing that your school was this irresponsible with personal data?
Gentlemen, you can't fight in here! This is the War Room!
I have a problem with these ratings. According to the criteria, ratings are strongly based on how many computers there are per student. I dont know about your university, but i rarely use the campus computers. When i do, there are always many and they are mostly not used. Most people either have a desktop at home / dorm or a laptop they carry everywhere. To get my university to be on the top 25 on this list, they'll need to have even more unused machines scattered about campus.
In summary, I disagree with the rating criteria. I would like to see the rating based more on how many computers there are per student (including the ones the students own) not how many computers the campus owns per student.
I graduated from RPI this past may and I can definitely agree with their assesment. Almost everything could be done online, from registering for class to attending class (via live video streams) to contacting the bursar or financial aid. They put a lot of effort into it and it is nice to see some recognition.
I can do almost everything online short of actually going to class. Yet we're not even ranked. I call complete bullshit on this article.
The only reason RPI is so high on the list is because the administration is a bunch of pandering suck-ups who will do whatever it takes to meet a trendy benchmark rather than actually earn respect the old fashioned way. RPI wants to be at the top of this list, so they excel at filling this requirements that Forbes is looking for. Yahoo does such a ranking, and for years RPI has been near the top of that list.
In reality, RPI's dorm network is a mess, they manditorily firewall off all students, and computer labs have disappeared because since 1999 they've required all students to have a laptop (and essentially required them to run windows). They've had among the worst problems with file sharing and the RIAA. Sure, there "is a" wireless network. Great. Ooh, and email access off campus! Too bad Rensselaer alumni free email for life is, as of this month, no longer.
I'm not a smorgasbord.
According to this article, Dartmoth has 12000 computers for 4000 students???
This study makes no sense. My school, the University of Oregon, offers free web hosting, discounted computers, support for handheld computers, multimedia equipment to borrow, and courses in emerging technologies. Why is all the information at Forbes.com wrong?
I'm not saying the UO is high tech, or that they should have been rated higher. I just wonder if they screwed up the data from other schools, too.
Now has amazing connectivity. The entire campus (quite large) is entirely "lit up" with wireless hot-spots, and most buildings have an ethernet tap for every classroom seat.
To make it better, in the student housing, for some pitifully low amount ($25?), you get a 20 megabit(!) connection. All paid for by student fees, of course.
Now, I'm all for computers. But when tuition has tripled over the past ten years, parking costs have quadrupled, and student fees are going out the roof - all the time real services to students are decreasing - it makes me wonder if it's really worth it.
Am I really going to be a better engineer if I have a 20 megabit connection to my home vs. a 1- or 2-megabit? Not really. Will a sociologist find better research to study over the 20-megabit connection? Nope.
The matter extends into the classrooms - while some connectivity has a very good payoff, they've gone to such lengths that the cost has far, far exceeded the benefits. It's just plain irresponsible.
steve
Oh, you're not stuck, you're just unable to let go of the onion rings.
PSU offers webmail, online course registration, online classes, free web space w/ http access and limited CGI, network access in dorm rooms, and I think there are areas with wireless scattered around the campus.
But that doesn't mean the sorority girls aren't slutty, or make up for the fact it's a football school first and a teaching school second.
You have two hands and one brain, so always code twice as much as you think!
Anyone else notice that their school had incorrect information? Funny, I never knew NJIT didn't host personal websites, I guess that makes my website null and void under the DMCA... oh wait, I mean they just had misrepresented data.
The reports of NJIT lacking a wireless network are greatly exaggerated.
I also recall we were the top #1 wired school in the nation my frosh year or so ('99), but now not even given a rating despite a massive upgrade of equipment.
# fuser -v
#
NYU has aeron chairs in the library computer lab....doesn't that count for something? Or not, but maybe it explains why I pay $1000 a unit here.
Don't be fooled by the promise of connectivity and online registration! If you care at all about your sanity, go somewhere else! RPI is not a g -- asfedj;sah( &Gfsogf AGOYD SABDAISLHD!! MUST ... KILL ... LINCOLN.....
You can mod your friends, you can mod your nose, but you can't mod your friend's nose.
So that is how they are going to get people to come to that dead town! Seriously, I visted there on my school tour. The campus is all on a hill and looked like half of it was under construction and the town was the last place I would care to live.
Do you changes clothes while making the "chee-chee-cha-cha-choh" transformation sound?
This article is completely inaccurate. I checked a couple of schools I'm familiar with and they were all missing multiple items. The rank is more a factor of whether the appropriate person filled out the form. In many schools, there are few administrators who actually know all of the services provided on the campus. Sadly, it's very difficult to get accurate information about technology at a school. The best way is probably to talk to a student. The admissions office has no idea what's going on. I remember listening to the admissions tour at one school. The tour guide lied on multiple facts which I had easy methods to verify. The tour guides are just there to sell the school.
Case Study: California Institute of Technology (who recently broke networking speed records)
The study says there is no wireless network (there is), school doesn't provide web pages (it does), can't register online (we do), no ethics policy (a very loose one: the honor code), school doesn't provide multimedia equipment (its available for use), doesn't stream its radio (our radio is only streamed).
What the study got right: I don't think classes are provided online, students are not required to own a computer, tuition doesn't include a computer, and I don't think courses are offered in emerging technologies (if by emerging technologies you mean MS Word). I wouldn't want to go to a school that has these features.
Personally, I think this idea of connectedness is a horrible measure of a school's IT saviness, and I'm not even talking about the erroneous study itself.
can't sleep. clowns will eat me.
I just looked over our school's info. A lot of it is wrong. It was off in at least three or four categories too, not just one or two.
Anyone else's school got the wrong info for it? From what I saw of the school where I work, I wouldn't give this list much credence.
Ok, I graduated from RPI not too long ago, and noticed a glaring error in their report on the school. Yeah, I know we won this ranking, and I'm happy to see that. However, when I look at the question "Do students have access to Usenet newsgroups?" and see an "X" (no), I see something wrong.
We definitely have Usenet access, and even have a bunch of rpi.* newsgroups accessable inside the school. Someone definitely overlooked something.
sincerely,
Your Future
ABSURDITY, n.: A statement or belief manifestly inconsistent with one's own opinion.
Its about time RPI was number one in something other than student depression and nothing to do around campus! Go Shirley!
--------- I have no signature
North Carolina State University
It says the school does not supply web pages. This is bull crap since I've had a website on the school server for over a year. Plus it explains right here on state's own server HOW to set up your web page.
Create your own homepage
Heck, every freshman undergrad is required to take a computer class where they make their own website.
Now down to the bottom, it says the school does not provide multimedia equipment. Again, completely false. Look at this site again on ncsu.edu
Multimedia Reserve
This is why I hate school rankings like these. They are usually very misleading and often contain false information.
I'd expect a lot of smaller, more obscure schools to rank more highly. Particularly when the ratio of technology to student body is so heavily used. USD for example not only has a great ratio of desktops to students, but also provides PALMs to incomming students and has network/power conneectors for laptops at most classroom seats. Yet they only scored number 17.
It would seem that a college with very few students would have a far easier time beating the ratio game.
Trying to use sarcasm in text-based forums does not work.
That being said, my school was 12th, and unlike RPI, we have well over 10,000 students.
- Is there a campuswide network?: yes
- Is there a wireless network?: yes
- Can students access e-mail away from school?: yes
- Does the school provide Web pages?: yes
- Does the school offer classes online?:
- Can students register online?: yes
- Can students do other administrative functions online?: yes
- Are students required to own a computer?: No, thats what labs are for!
- :Can students get discounted computers? yes
- Does the school support handheld computers? yes
- Does the school stream audio or video of any courses?: yes
- Is network access available in dorm rooms?: yes
- Is network access available in dormitory lounges?: yes
- Is a computer ethics policy in place for the school?: yes
- :Do students have access to Usenet newsgroups?: yes
- Does tuition include a computer?: No, thats what labs are for!
- Does the school provide multimedia equipment?: yes
- Does the school offer courses in emerging technologies?: yes
- Does the school stream its campus radio or TV stations?: yes
Looks like they didn't even bother doing the minimal amount of research.I really can't tell how they did the research for the article. With so many basic wrong answers for GW, I can't imagine that they surveyed the schools themselves. Some of the questions that were wrong were the first things they tell you about on the tours when you visit; I can't imagine that GW wouldn't tell Forbes what they tell high school seniors. If the writer did the research himself, he needs to think about another career. The same can be said if they had interns doing the work, which is probably the case. But I still don't understand, many of these questions could have been answered by simple searches from GW's homepage.
Simply said, this article has no founding whatsoever. If other school's information is as wrong as GW's, then this article can't even be taken with a grain of salt.
I have to call into question the accuracy of this survey. Under my campus, UC San Diego, they have 4 answers that should be yes marked as no: Is there a wireless network? Does the school provide Web pages? Does the school support handheld computers? Does the school stream audio or video of any courses? I know for a fact all these should be marked yes as I use the wireless network (which has been up for at least 4 years) daily with a PDA, have had classes which post audio & video copies of all lectures, and use the web space provided on one of the campus' Solaris servers for my personal web page.
Sadly, PS/2 was yet another victim of USB, which doesn't care what you plug into it, the electrical slut.