The news that Dartmouth had made the top 50 schools for African-American students, as determined by Black Enterprise magazine, did not provoke any deep feeling. In fact, I was rather oblivious to the fact -- what's another ranking, anyway? However, the important thing to note is not Dartmouth's position in the rankings (particularly because this is the first time they have made the cut), but rather the effect it will have on people's perception of the College.
Whether it is at the level of sports, colleges or even an individual scale, we always get the feeling that everything is being judged, sorted and ultimately ranked. Essentially, I believe rankings tell us nothing, especially about colleges, since so much depends on personal experience.
College rankings in particular seem rather difficult to justify. I do not understand how one can measure the social and academic environment for African-American students. My college experience is not something that can be broken down for statistical analysis. Rather, it is comprised of different moments, each personal, which ultimately help shape me as an individual and as a human being.
Yet people still hold on to the belief that rankings matter, regardless how subjective they are. I have come to the conclusion that people do this because they need something -- anything, really -- that they can cling to. Rankings can be a small aid and can provide an initial impression of certain colleges. When I visited Dartmouth during Dimensions, I had the privilege of being hosted by a member of Lambda Upsilon Lambda fraternity, one of the minority fraternities on campus. I got the distinct feeling that despite their status as minority students, they were very much involved in campus life -- perhaps even more so than most. They showed me that they too were not only represented, but also given a strong voice when it came to decision making.
Some believe that because something is ranked higher than something else it automatically makes it better. I strongly disagree. Rankings are never an exact science and are all too often based on subjective criteria. The reason rankings retain their value, however, is because many people set so much store in them. It is ultimately perception that matters; Harvard would not be what it is today if it were not perceived that way.
So what do these rankings tell us about Dartmouth? Can we assume that the College's academic and social environment addresses the needs of African-American students? Certainly -- but we do not need rankings to tell us this. Rather, these rankings actually demonstrate that the African-American community recognizes the steps Dartmouth has taken in order to better serve its minority students.
"[Rankings] are a guide, nothing more," says Mattie Stevens, Dartmouth's interim black student advisor. "You have to see what works best for you."
As I take it, these rankings, whether accurate or not, do draw lots of positive attention to the College. I see this as an opportunity for Dartmouth to further solidify its place among the top schools for minority students. In fact, Stevens notes that the administration has been very supportive.
But even if Dartmouth has been recognized, this does not mean we should sit back and rest on our laurels. Instead, we should do the utmost as a community to improve everyone's experience on campus, not just that of African-American students.
In the end, it is up to you whether you take these rankings seriously. I know that I did not really consider them, and it turned out alright for me. The important thing to remember is that no ranking can come close to providing the full picture. They simply give us an idea, and a vague one at that, of what a college is like.
Nevertheless, rankings remain a valuable and widespread tool in the college search process. And luckily for us, Dartmouth College has greatly profited from this latest distinction. In the future, Dartmouth will be on the minds of high-achieving African-American students.
