# Please forgive me (or not) while I brag about my university **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 28, 2014, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785 "2014-10-28T18:44:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/1 "2014-10-28T18:44:37Z")
With the release today of the US News and World Report’s list of university rankings, four internationally ‘recognized’ rankings of the world’s best universities have now all reached the same conclusion this year. The University of Toronto is not just the highest ranked university in Canada (everyone knew that already ;)), but it is also in each list’s top 25. Specifically, the U of T is ranked: [14[sup]th[/sup] in the world by US News and World Report](http://finance.yahoo.com/news/harvard-tops-us-news-world-150403455.html) [20[sup]th[/sup] overall by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings](http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2014-15/world-ranking) [20[sup]th[/sup] also by the QS World University Rankings](http://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2014#sorting=rank+region=+country=+faculty=+stars=false+search=) [23[sup]rd[/sup] by Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities](http://www.shanghairanking.com/ARWU2014.html) So, now it is official: I am the best prof in the 19[sup]th[/sup] best university\* in the world. (\*actually 19.25[sup]th[/sup], but who’s counting, eh?) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/2 "2014-10-28T19:51:08Z")
Congrats! I do some adjunct teaching at my alma mater (Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio) and still have very warm feelings towards it, although its placement on the college rankings lists goes up and down every year. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/3 "2014-10-28T19:53:15Z")
Bah…y’all don’t even play in the SEC. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/4 "2014-10-28T20:01:29Z")
> [@KarlGauss](#): > > So, now it is official: I am the best prof in the 19[sup]th[/sup] best university\* in the world. > > (\*actually 19.25[sup]th[/sup], but who’s counting, eh?) it think that oversight is an indication that maybe you aren’t the best prof. ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/5 "2014-10-28T20:07:00Z")
I just assume that UWaterloo was not considered for ranking, explaining its glaring omission. After all, it could hardly be behind an institution whose best prof considers the arithmetic mean of four rankings to be a meaningful statistic. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/6 "2014-10-28T20:09:52Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Bah…y’all don’t even play in the SEC. 😛 The only time I’ve seen Oberlin mentioned in _Sports Illustrated_ was when our football team was threatening to break Columbia’s record for most consecutive losses. Fortunately, Columbia’s record today remains intact. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2014, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/7 "2014-10-28T20:16:32Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Bah…y’all don’t even play in the SEC. 😛 Well, we wouldn’t want every university in it. The division helps us know who to sneer at on the street (besides the obvious rivalries, that is). ---
**Author:** ![Tiktaalik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7cd45c/32.png) [@Tiktaalik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tiktaalik)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2014, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/8 "2014-10-29T00:48:30Z")
Undergrad Big East. Law school Ivy League. Grad school SEC. Still love the Big East most of all. Root for them all but, Hoya Saxa! Undergrad was the best! ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/9 "2014-11-17T19:22:17Z")
Hey, congrats, **KarlGauss**! Nice to see that sort of recognition for a Canadian university. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/10 "2014-11-17T19:41:06Z")
> [@Tiktaalik](#): > > Undergrad was the best! I got a fine graduate school education, but I will never stop singing the praises of my undergraduate alma mater, the University of Michigan. If I’m ever rich, they will get all of my money. (#14, baby!)🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/11 "2014-11-17T19:51:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Tiktaalik** : > > Undergrad Big East. > Law school Ivy League. > Grad school SEC. > > Still love the Big East most of all. > > Root for them all but, > > Hoya Saxa! > > Undergrad was the best! Ah, that school where the students not only don’t know the difference between Latin and Greek, but they’re proud of it. –Chronos, Villanova '99 ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2014, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/12 "2014-11-17T20:47:45Z")
Well done! I assume you’re responsible for at least half the awesomeness! ---
**Author:** ![DrumBum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e79b87/32.png) [@DrumBum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrumBum)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/13 "2014-11-18T12:50:13Z")
I was please to see my alma mater had a second place and pair of fourth place rankings. Less pleasing was Ms. DrumBum pointing out that her alma mater, an obscure state school in the Berkeley hills, bested my school in the US News & World Report rankings. On a more interesting note, I saw that the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland ranked #386 which might hurt their recruiting efforts next year. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/14 "2014-11-18T13:06:48Z")
Congratulations! My alma mater (McGill) also gets praise fairly often. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/15 "2014-11-18T13:30:21Z")
Congratulations Karl Gauss. My undergrad/grad school certainly ranks, but not as high as I would have thought: University of California, San Diego. ---
**Author:** ![Whiskey\_Dickens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/9fc348/32.png) [@Whiskey\_Dickens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whiskey_Dickens)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2014, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-forgive-me-or-not-while-i-brag-about-my-university/702785/16 "2014-11-18T14:21:35Z")
My wife was awarded the academic gold medal at St. Mike’s college at U of T. You may touch the hem of my pant cuff.