One Size Does Not Fit All: A Critical Race Theory Perspective on College Rankings

Critical Race Theory contends that institutions codify and sustain racial inequalities even absent explicitly racist motives or actions. College ranking systems perpetuate such institutional racism by socially constructing minority-serving institutions (MSIs) as less valuable and prestigious. By assigning greater worth to criteria favoring more selective institutions, ranking systems assign lower scores to institutions enrolling higher percentages of underrepresented students. The authors compared three higher education institution ranking systems' appraisals of MSIs. These systems employ varying methodological approaches to classifying college status, with apparent impacts on MSIs' performances. Implications of these rankings on the standings and fortunes of MSIs are considered.