This table shows the relative percentage weights assigned to each ranking factor used in the 2024 Best Colleges rankings. Changes were made to the weights of multiple indicators as part of broader revisions to the methodology, explained here. In short, five ranking factors that were in the previous edition’s formula – alumni giving, class size, high school class standing, the proportion of instructional faculty with terminal degrees, and the proportion of graduates who borrowed federal loans – were removed from the formula to place greater focus on outcomes measures and to rely on data universally reported by schools or obtainable from third-party sources.