Top public universities in America....

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by SnappleApple

#67, meh. It sounds like someone should give Michael Crow a good kick in the rear. With the exorbitant salary we pay him and how he keeps increasing tuition on us, ASU should be in the top 10, top 50 at least. I miss the days when ASU was a proper party school.

That's pretty much my reaction to this "excitement" over a couple of AZ universities ranking in the top 100. Nothing to boast about at all! ASU is the largest public university in the nation as far as attendance, and probably the most respected institution for higher learning in the entire state, but all it can muster is 67th??? That's not honorable, it's pathetic!

[Hoonose]

Originally Posted by ShampooBanana

To save everyone a click, ASU is #67 and U of A #76.

I don't put a whole lot of stock in these things, but it's pretty cool to see my undergrad alma mater in the Top 10 (Illinois).

Me too! Class of '72.

My older daughter went to U of AZ only briefly on a full ride only to transfer to Brooks Film Institute.
My younger graduated ASU and then on to U of AZ Med School.

[WilmaWildcat]

Globally UA is the most respected Arizona university.

Originally Posted by WilmaWildcat

US News Top Global Universities: UA #81. ASU #145.

The difference is the research reputation.

https://www.usnews.com/education/bes...arizona-104179
https://www.usnews.com/education/bes...versity-104151

[kent_moore]

ASU is currently ranked at #125th globally. Hopefully they'll able crack it in top 100 in the next few years, I would stop considering other unis for my masters if ASU can make it.

It is my personal preference to get a masters degree from any of the top 100 world's best universities.

[bantam88]

Originally Posted by kent_moore

Ok, its good to know that BASIS has nothing to do with them leaving BASIS.

I heard from some former BASIS parents that they transferred their kids to other highschools for higher GPA purpose, something you cannot obtain easily from BASIS.

Some kids want to go to schools with better sports programs or other programs to get a more well rounded school experience. Admittedly that are not a priority at Basis schools which are very academic focused. Different strokes for different folks

My own kids at Basis Mesa seem to have no inclination to transfer and seem to want to finish high school there.

[kent_moore]

Originally Posted by bantam88

Some kids want to go to schools with better sports programs or other programs to get a more well rounded school experience. Admittedly that are not a priority at Basis schools which are very academic focused. Different strokes for different folks

My own kids at Basis Mesa seem to have no inclination to transfer and seem to want to finish high school there.

What grade level are they?

My friend has 2 kids in BASIS middle school, the kids are now begging to their father (my friend) to transfer to another school, the pressure is getting too much I heard.

[bantam88]

Originally Posted by kent_moore

What grade level are they?

My friend has 2 kids in BASIS middle school, the kids are now begging to their father (my friend) to transfer to another school, the pressure is getting too much I heard.

My eldest is entering 8th grade while my second is entering 7th.

[Hal Roach]

They are opening a BASIS here in Bangkok... looks a bit like they are full of themselves, but apparently they can show the test scores. Must be embarrassing as Hell for the educrats in AZ to have a charter school come in and kick their butts. I get the impression it is not a good place to work, but you could do way worse.

[cjseliga]

Originally Posted by Hal Roach

I get the impression it is not a good place to work, but you could do way worse.

I think they try and go after the "non-traditional" teachers, those who didn't go to college specifically for teaching, but worked in other fields, businesses and industries before deciding to try and teach. In Arizona at least, I believe charter school teachers don't need a teaching certificate to teach.

[grad_student200]

Originally Posted by SnappleApple

#67, meh. It sounds like someone should give Michael Crow a good kick in the rear. With the exorbitant salary we pay him and how he keeps increasing tuition on us, ASU should be in the top 10, top 50 at least. I miss the days when ASU was a proper party school.

This cracks me up. I went to ASU for graduate school "back in the day". In the 80s during that "ME" decade the elite HS seniors of Arizona would normally shun ASU and try for a higher-ranked school like the Ivy League, Stanford, etc. U of A was considered the more higher ranked in-state school, so if a HS Valadictorian could not afford to go to Princeton then U of A was usually the "backup" plan. ASU was the "party school" of the 80s in public perception.

Nowadays, ASU has grown so tremendously that it actually is very academically competitive. The national appeal and large number of international STEM students who just live in the library or lab make it rigorous. It's still easy to get in but much harder to stay in a STEM major these days. Standardized test scores for STEM at both the undergraduate and graduate level have gotten much higher. You have to have a near perfect GRE and close to a 4.0 just to get "consideration" in the computer science PhD. The reason is that there is a long line of students with those credentials in the application pool. It wasn't like that in the 80s.

Realistically, ASU did have many hard courses back when I was in graduate school in the 90s. I just laughed about the 80s media perception of the "partying", Manzanita Hall's undergraduate turmoil, Mill Ave., and the spring break mindset. This meant a HS Valadictorian from some rural part of AZ who couldn't afford to go to Northwestern or Georgetown would likely have went to U of A instead of ASU. I personally know such students who did that.

But as a middle-aged engineer with over 20 years of experience, my current, mature view is that it's actually best to go to a community college for the first two years and then transfer for the junior year to either ASU, U of A or NAU. To me, the major and demand in the job market are the most crucial factors. Next would be the "comfort zone" of the student. For example, if a student simply doesn't enjoy the summer heat of Phoenix or Tucson then Flagstaff and NAU would be goood. If a student lives near Wilcox or Douglas and wants to be able to go home many weekends then U of A would be ideal. An aggressive focus on internships puts Tempe in the spotlight.

In summary, I know the party school reputation of the past. Realistically, ASU was very rigorous for me in graduate school. But it looks like it's nationally ranked much higher now and many graduate programs are very difficult for admission to a level not seen in the 1980s or 90s.