The University of Wisconsin ranked the eighth-best public college in America and the 34th-best overall in this year’s U.S. News & World Report. Despite the notable rankings, some UW administrators criticize the yearly report’s accuracy.

UW Provost Peter Spear questioned its credibility and said he believes the ranking system does not consider the mission and environment at large state universities.

According to Spear, a more refined and accurate ranking system would place UW “probably in the top 10 or 15” best colleges in the country.

“If you look at the way in which those rankings were done, a heavy part of the weighting … has to do with [factors such as financial] resources or the quality of the students you admit or how selective you are,” Spear said. “[Those factors] don’t necessarily reflect the quality of the education.”

In calculating America’s best colleges, U.S. News based 25 percent on peer assessment, 20 percent on faculty resources, 20 percent on graduation and retention rates, 15 percent on student selectivity, 10 percent on financial resources, 5 percent on graduation-rate performance and 5 percent on alumni support.

Spear questioned the relevance of some of these factors, including placing 15 percent of the evaluation on student selectivity.

“We’re a state school. It’s part of our mission to be accessible,” Spear said. “Students who haven’t done well in high school know they [won’t be accepted to UW], so they don’t bother applying. [When they] don’t apply, that makes our rating lower.”

Spear added that a number of universities employ measures to encourage students who know they will not be admitted to apply. This artificially inflates the university’s selectivity rating and offsets reports such as U.S. News & World Report’s.

A university’s ability to admit and pass under-qualified students through rigorous and “really great” programs may point to the sign of a “great university,” Spear noted, adding this should not be a penalty for a university that prides itself on accessibility.

In addition to ranking schools on a whole, the report also lists specialty programs and schools, such as business and engineering schools, which are based solely on peer assessments. The assessments, which are filled out by top university administrators, offer insight to how UW’s schools and programs are perceived by national academia.

But for some, the ranking is challenging.

Michael Knetter, dean of the UW School of Business, whose school ranked 12th-best nationwide in the business-program rankings, was critical of the report for its total reliance on peer assessment.

“The problem with this ranking is that other deans cannot be expected to know details of all business programs and, in any case, they are not the group we are aiming to satisfy,” Knetter said via e-mail.

Executive Associate Dean Pat Farrell expressed similar concerns for the 12th-best ranking of UW’s College of Engineering. Farrell questioned the methodology of peer assessments, but acknowledged, “It’s very nice to be recognized by our industry and our peers.”

In the overall report, UW ranked fifth in peer assessments but achieved only eighth place overall when other factors were considered. Spear said this suggests other universities value UW’s education more than the published report indicates.

“We’re proud that our peers think we’re the fifth-best public school in the nation, but what are they basing those rankings on?” Spear said. “Do they really know how good our programs are?”