CUNY Baruch, California State San Marcos, CUNY Lehman Lead the 11th Annual Social Mobility Index (SMI)

Old Dominion University Becomes the First-Ever Carnegie Research 1 University to Reach the SMI Top 10

PORTLAND, Ore.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CollegeNET, Inc., a major provider of web-based on-demand technologies for higher education, today released the eleventh annual Social Mobility Index (SMI), led this year by #1 CUNY Baruch College, #2 CSU San Marcos, and #3 CUNY Lehman College. The CUNY and CSU systems continue as perennial social mobility bellwethers with five CUNY and nine CSU institutions amongst the top 20 in the 2024 SMI. At #4 in the 2024 SMI, Winston-Salem State University proves again that it is not only a national social mobility leader, but far and away the leader amongst HBCUs at competitively driving social mobility. Only one other HBCU is amongst the SMI top 50: Livingstone College at #41.

“Higher education is essential for social mobility, creating a diverse, educated workforce that strengthens our national economy and shapes a brighter future. For so many CSUSM students, earning a college degree has a profound impact on their lives, their families, and the economic impact in the community.”

The SMI benchmarks four-year U.S. colleges and universities according to how well they hold the line on tuition, enroll students from low-income backgrounds, graduate their students into good paying jobs, and apply their promotional messaging towards solving our nation’s social mobility problem. The 2024 SMI includes 1,205 four-year institutions.

The Top 20 SMI Schools for 2024

1 – CUNY Bernard M. Baruch College
2 – California State University, San Marcos
3 – CUNY Lehman College
4 – Winston-Salem State University
5 – CUNY City College
6 – California State University, Dominguez Hills
7 – Old Dominion University
8 – California State University, Los Angeles
9 – California State University, Long Beach
10 – California State University, Bakersfield
11 – California State University, Northridge
12 – CUNY John Jay College of Criminal Justice
13 – Farmingdale State College
14 – California State University, Channel Islands
15 – The University of Texas at El Paso
16 – California State University, Fresno
17 – California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
18 – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
19 – New Jersey City University
20 – CUNY Queens College

“Baruch College is honored to be recognized as the #1 institution on CollegeNET’s Social Mobility Index, and we are proud to have consistently ranked in the top 10 over the past decade,” said CUNY Baruch College President S. David Wu. “At a time when the value of higher education is under scrutiny and rising tuition costs create significant barriers for many families, providing accessible, high-quality education is more critical than ever. Baruch is unwavering in its mission to create transformative opportunities that empower students from all backgrounds to succeed in meaningful and impactful ways, preparing them to thrive in the 21st century and beyond.”

“We are grateful to CollegeNET for keeping social mobility at the forefront of the national conversation and for driving institutions to prioritize access and opportunity for all students,” stated Ellen Neufeldt, President of California State University, San Marcos. “Higher education is essential for social mobility, creating a diverse, educated workforce that strengthens our national economy and shapes a brighter future. For so many CSUSM students, earning a college degree has a profound impact on their lives, their families, and the economic impact in the community.”

“Winston-Salem State University’s (WSSU) ranking among the top five universities in social mobility is reflective of our sustained commitment to transforming the lives of students post-graduation,” said Winston-Salem State University Chancellor Bonita Brown. “Education is seen as the great equalizer, and we are zealous in our efforts to ensure that students experience upward social mobility for having entrusted us with their academic pursuits. We will remain steadfast in preparing graduates to succeed and improve their lives and the lives of their families.”

Power Move: Old Dominion University Becomes First Ever Research 1 University to Reach the SMI Top 10

Powered by one of the strongest momentum moves in the 2024 SMI, Old Dominion jumped 20 places to #7 to become the first Carnegie Research 1 institution ever to reach the SMI top 10. University of Texas El Paso, another R1 institution, jumped 14 positions to #15 in the SMI. Many traditionally “famous” institutions continue to move up in the SMI as university administrators nationwide embrace the social mobility movement. Princeton University jumped 251 places to number 227 in this year’s SMI. UCLA advanced 104 places to claim position 143. After skyrocketing 1000 places last year, Harvard University continues its upward move jumping 23 places to 340. Kudos to the civic mindedness of these influential institutions as they align their administrative and admissions practices with the social mobility research contributions their faculties have long pioneered (e.g., the work of Saez, Zucman, et. al. at U-C Berkeley; the work of Raj Chetty, et. al. at Harvard).

Restoring the Public’s Faith in U.S. Higher Education

Shortly before U.S. News introduced its “Best” college ranking scheme in the 1980s, Milton Friedman proclaimed that the sole mission of the corporation is to enrich its shareholders: “Whether blameworthy or not, the use of the cloak of social responsibility, and the nonsense spoken in its name by influential and prestigious businessmen, does clearly harm the foundations of a free society… The sole purpose of a business is to generate profits for its shareholders.” For many institutions still beholden to Friedman’s ethos, their strategic plans remain generally aimed at hoarding endowment money and increasing the number of applicants (and corresponding rejections) so as to project an image of “selectivity.” As more students fill out more and more applications while also chasing U.S. News “prestige,” the “Best” schools driving the highest applicant demand can further justify tuition increases. In so doing, they open the way for all schools to follow suit thus eroding affordability and accessibility across the entire U.S. higher education system. Institutions buying into this model teach the public to believe that the higher their rank under the USNWR “Best” scheme the greater the value of the degrees granted by their institution. Students and families thus strive to move as far as possible up the wealthiest pecking order, and often do so while taking on enormous debt.

The insidious corollary to this pursuit is that the primary purpose of obtaining a college degree is to garner status for oneself. Yet to any enlightened person, a college education does not merely imply a degree of social status. More importantly it represents a degree of civic responsibility to apply one's skills for the benefit of family, employer, and our society. According to Jim Wolfston, CollegeNET President and creator of the SMI: “What Friedman did not acknowledge, nor did most universities critically ponder in the 1980s, is that by framing their institutional mission and strategy according to his neo-liberal ethos, they thereby contradicted their own corporate responsibility to our society. Congratulations to CUNY Baruch, California State San Marcos, CUNY Lehman, Winston-Salem State University and the other leaders of the SMI for conscientiously modelling for families and students the arrow of responsibility behind both institutional purpose and pursuit of a college degree.”

Supporting Social Mobility and Institutional Excellence

CollegeNET is the producer of the international award-winning documentary film, RIGGED. RIGGED explains how the long prevailing wealthist value system in U.S. higher education limits opportunity and upward mobility and thus undermines U.S. democracy. RIGGED builds on the historical premise that growing economic imbalance ultimately leads to social unrest, political upheaval, and war. Through interviews with authors, historians, educators, and students, RIGGED explains how the wealthist value system at the center of U.S. higher education constitutes a major risk factor for triggering these historic consequences and how this value system can be changed. Since its release, RIGGED has been awarded Best Documentary Feature at The Septimius Awards in Amsterdam, the Toronto Magazine Film Festival, the Mindfield Film Festival, and the World Premiere Film Awards, in addition to garnering numerous film festival nominations. Read more about RIGGED here.

About CollegeNET

CollegeNET, Inc. has been a prime mover and developer of important new product markets for higher education, including the world’s first automated classroom scheduling system and the first patented system for serving institution-branded web-based admissions forms. Today CollegeNET is pioneering new AI/Supercomputing/Video markets that enhance learning and career opportunities for students and citizens. The company’s new suite of Opportunity Drivers includes StandOut® Intelligent Mirror and StandOut Classroom. Intelligent Mirror provides patented AI video analysis technology and self-guided practice for job seekers, professionals, and others who want to improve their speaking skills and self-confidence (www.standout.com). StandOut Classroom solves the long-standing “degree pathways” problem by introducing a new, asynchronous learning environment that requires no specification of time or place. CollegeNET systems are now used by more than 1,000 institutions worldwide for event and academic scheduling, virtual classroom instruction, career preparation, college admissions, campus hiring, candidate recruitment, and course evaluation.

CollegeNET, Inc.
jill@collegenet.com