Every year thousands of high school seniors take the plunge and apply to a multitude of different colleges. And every year, hundreds of different publications tell students the top schools for academia, but do any of them ever tell of the worst? Radar Magazine, a smart, opinionated magazine about news, pop culture, style and politics, is the newest to list the worst schools in America, said Maer Roshan, Editor-in-Chief.
This is the first time the annual semi-scientific guide to the worst colleges in America will come to Radar readers in print. The previous two years the “worst colleges” section resided only at radaronline.com. This year in addition to the published version there are also web exclusives, which can be found at: http://radaronline.com/from-the%20magazine/2008/08/worst_colleges_in_america_2008_part_1_01.php.
The unique idea was thought of and implemented by Roshan, said Sarah Hawes, a Public Relations Representative from The Rosen Group. The annual college survey is an exhaustive guide to the most substandard schools in America. It incorporates statistics on academics, graduation rates, and student life from a diverse array of sources, including the Princeton Review, U.S. News & World Report, and the U.S. Department of Education, stated radaronline.com.
“Radar factored in criteria such as; low SAT scores, incompetent professors, rock-bottom admissions standards, unbridled alcohol and drug consumption, rampant criminal activity, and dubious alumni,” radaronline.com
To complete the picture of dissolution, they added reviews from online forums like Students Review, College Confidential, and College Prowler, wrote radaronline.com.
“When developing the idea further, Radar Magazine knew that the decision you make as a 17-year-old will haunt you for the rest of your life – and they wanted to help. Every September as suburban mailboxes across the nation are stuffed with publications that rank academia’s most elite institutions, Radar realized that it’s really not that much of a challenge to identify America’s best colleges. So for millions of students, identifying the worst colleges seemed like a far more valuable service,” said Hawes.
The contributing reporters to this years “worst colleges” were: Walker Boyd, Paige Ferrari, Ray Gustini, Evan Mulvihill, Daniel Riley, Jacob Savage, Paul Schrodt, Josie Swindler, Connie Wang, and Piper Weiss, stated radaronline.com. Throughout the 10-page spread prospective college students will find humor in categories such as: Most degenerative student body, ugliest campus, most superficial, most intolerable, most dubious degree, most stoned and much more.
Included among the “worst colleges” spread are sections such as, America’s saddest college mascots, Curriculum of Dunces (America’s dumbest college courses), The Dishonor roll (100 signs your college isn’t prestigious), and Higher Learning (Americas 10 best party colleges). Students no longer have to spend hours researching what schools might be better then others, Radar offers several reasons as to why each of the twenty-five schools chosen have made their “worst” list.
As with everything, the “worst colleges” list has gotten both positive and negative feedback from Radar readers. People have spoken against or for what was said about one or more of the schools in the September issue. Radar encourages it’s readers to respond, not only so they know people are reading, but to give everyone a chance to share their view on things with the online community, stated radaronline.com
“Happily, many of life’s decisions are reversible. Shoplifting misdemeanors can be expunged, Crocs can be incinerated, and tribal tattoos can be removed. But, alas, you can’t un-flash your tits. And your alma mater is forever, so choosing the best college to fit you is important” radaronline.com
The September issue of Radar, which features college week, can be found online at radaronline.com or can be purchased through radaronline.com. For more information on Septembers issue or attaining a subscription visit their website.
