Any news on NRC rankings?

[Karina 07]

By the time they come out, they'll be obsolete .

[Galoisj]

hope that I can see it in my lifetime

[Weary]

Maybe perpetual announcement of upcoming improved ranking is just a way of making people more sceptical about existing alternatives?

[buckykatt]

Originally Posted by Weary

Maybe perpetual announcement of upcoming improved ranking is just a way of making people more sceptical about existing alternatives?

I doubt it. Just the usual human tendency to underestimate the difficulty of doing something new...

[GymShorts]

Not that it matters or that it should surprise us, but has anyone else noticed that last time they pushed back their release date (for the sixth time or so), they said it would come out in late October or early November? Well it's November 16th, and they have neither released it, nor set a new date.

[notacolour]

Originally Posted by GymShorts

Not that it matters or that it should surprise us, but has anyone else noticed that last time they pushed back their release date (for the sixth time or so), they said it would come out in late October or early November? Well it's November 16th, and they have neither released it, nor set a new date.

Now they're saying November (emphasis added):

The National Research Council has launched its latest project to assess U.S. research doctorate programs. Like previous efforts in 1983 and 1995, the new study is designed to: help universities improve the quality of these programs through benchmarking; provide potential students and the public with accessible, readily available information on doctoral programs nationwide; and enhance the nation's overall research capacity. Data collection for the study began during the week of July 24, 2006. The release of the Methodology Guide is now estimated for November. The release schedule for the project report and its database will be announced when we have precise dates. Financial support for the study has been provided by the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and approximately 200 participating universities.

[Golden Rule]

From the article earlier this thread --

The notice says that the project’s “methodology guide” — a preliminary report that will summarize the statistical techniques used in the new assessments — will be released in late October or early November. But no date has been set for the release of the assessments themselves.

So in other words, what was supposed to be released in November is irrelevant to all of you, and no one has a clue about the actual rankings release date.

[buckykatt]

Originally Posted by Golden Rule

So in other words, what was supposed to be released in November is irrelevant to all of you, and no one has a clue about the actual rankings release date.

Nailed it.

This is really disappointing for those of us applying this year.

[unitroot]

I think you guys didn't see this post:

Fresh Delay for National Research Council's Doctoral Assessments - Chronicle.com

[GymShorts]

Originally Posted by buckykatt

This is really disappointing for those of us applying this year.

I know. I was not counting on these rankings making a difference on where I apply, but if any school makes a huge jump (up or down), it might make me take a second look. Besides, these rankings should be a better indicator of the current state of departments, since the data will be much more recent.

Hopefully they'll at least be out when we are deciding which offers to accept.