Jaw-Dropping Report Names One Idaho College “Worst In America”

There are many reasons to distrust the standard US News & World Report rankings of the Best Colleges In America. Author Malcolm Gladwell has done plenty of research to prove the lack of fundamental research in the annual report, which seems critical for colleges to be highly ranked. It's no surprise that the top three schools in 2024 are Princeton and MIT, and a tie for third between Harvard and Stanford.

When you filter the US News & World Report study to Idaho schools, the University of Idaho claims the top spot, followed by Boise State and the College of Idaho. None of these schools' rankings will impress anyone, with Moscow coming in at #185.

Another publication, the Herald Weekly, published its own study. Instead of ranking the schools based on mysterious metrics like US News & World Report does, the article's author, Erika Burch, ranked the schools based on simple math. They look at tuition costs, acceptance rates, and graduation rates.

According to the Weekly Herald's research, one college stood out among all of America's higher education choices as the absolute worst in the country: Whittier College in Whittier, California. The article pointed out that undergraduates typically pay nearly $48,000 annually, but the average alum earns an annual salary of $46,800.

Not much better than Whittier College is Idaho's Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston. The article points out the positives of the school, such as the high acceptance rate of 97% and the low tuition cost of around $11,000. But the average Warrior graduates with over $20,000 in debt, and the school's graduation rate is only 30%