UMass-Amherst was ranked 99th among national universities, and Westfield State was 112th among regional universities.
Williams College in Williamstown again obtained the No. 1 ranking in the 2011 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges list.
Amherst College in Amherst, Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley and Smith College in Northampton were all ranked in the top 50 for national liberal arts colleges. Hampshire College came in at No. 119 out of more than 200 schools ranked.
Amherst College again came in at No. 2.
A document on the college’s Web site states in part: “We commit not to mention ‘U.S. News’ or similar rankings in any of our new publications, since such lists mislead the public into thinking that the complexities of American Higher Education can be reduced to a number.”
At Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, which came in at No. 26, director of government and community relations Kevin McCaffrey is also dismissive of the ranking.
“To be honest, Mount Holyoke does not spend a lot of time thinking about ‘U.S. News and World Report,’” McCaffrey said, “because it doesn’t measure the most important thing: How well an institution educates a student.”
Officials at Williams and Mount Holyoke said they question the methodology used to rank the schools.
“While it is certainly gratifying to be considered among the top schools in the country there is really no methodology to support numerical rankings of colleges and universities,” said James Kolesar, Williams' assistant to the president for public affairs.
View U.S. News & World Report College Rankings: Schools in the Pioneer Valley and Berkshire County in a larger map
Bay Path College in Longmeadow and Elms College in Chicopee both ranked in the top 50 for regional colleges in the north.
Bay Path College ranked No. 27, moving up four spots from the last edition. Elms College came in at No. 36.
“We are really pleased with our improved status and I have to credit our talented board, faculty and staff members for that change,” said Bay Path president Carol A. Leary. “Our strategic plan focuses on several things including enhancing our reputation, creating programs that are innovative and respond to work force needs and trying to ensure the affordability of a private college education. I think this outside report shows that we are succeeding in our goals,”
Springfield College and Western New England College tied for the No. 67 spot in the regional universities category.
“We are pleased that this popular resource for high school students and parents has, once again, attested to the excellence of education at Springfield College,” said president Richard B. Flynn.
Western New England College spokesman Stephen A. Roulier said he hopes the school’s new academic building and school of pharmacy will be a draw for students.
“We are always pleased when outside publications recognize the excellence of the higher education provided at the school,” he said. “We have a lot of exciting new things going on that will continue to attract students to the school.”
Westfield State ranked No. 112 in the regional universities category. Westfield State will become Westfield State University in October under legislation signed by Gov. Deval L. Patrick in July.
“Today, Westfield State University is in very good company, solidly ranked among the top regional institutions and leading our state university peers in the rankings,” said president Evan S. Dobelle.
Westfield State spokeswoman Molly C. Watson called the ranking “nice news to be able to share with others. It validates the work we do here everyday and rankings make a good starting point for those making their future education decisions.”
The University of Massachusetts at Amherst ranked high in several categories, including No. 99 in national private and public universities, No. 45 in national public universities and No. 52 for its engineering school.
Edward F. Blaguszewski, executive director of news and media relations, said UMass is proud to be a part of the rankings.
“To be considered one of the best schools in the country is an honor, but what is most important to us is how prospective students respond to the university,” he said. “With 31,000 applications for admission this fall, we know they appreciate the quality of the education here.”
Reporters Ted LaBorde and Pat Cahill contributed to this report.