NEW YORK — Columbia University will pay $9 million to resolve a class-action lawsuit from students alleging they were mischarged for tuition due to misleading data reported to U.S. News & World Report. This settlement emerges from a controversy linked to the university’s ranking, which saw it rise to No. 2 in the publication’s “Best Colleges” list in 2022, a positioning vital for attracting prospective students.
The lawsuit gained traction following allegations of inaccuracies in the data Columbia submitted, which were said to contribute to an inflated national ranking. A mathematician from the university raised concerns, publishing a blog post that highlighted potential discrepancies in the reported statistics. Among these was the claim that 83 percent of Columbia’s classes had fewer than 20 students, assertions the lawsuit deemed false and misleading.
After the revelations, Columbia experienced a sharp drop in its ranking, falling to No. 18 the following year, prompting the institution to withdraw from the rankings entirely. This decision reflected the growing scrutiny on how colleges present their data to enhance their reputations.
The proposed settlement, filed recently in Federal District Court in Manhattan, covers approximately 22,000 former undergraduate students who attended Columbia College, Columbia Engineering, or the School of General Studies from 2016 to 2022. The university, while not admitting to any wrongdoing in the settlement agreement, expressed regret over the inaccuracies in its reporting.
Affected students may receive about $273 each if the maximum number of claims is made, though the total amount could be reduced based on legal fees. The settlement illustrates the ongoing debate on the ethics of college rankings and their implications for student choices and institutional reputations.
Columbia’s experience serves as a reminder of the powerful influence of college rankings on higher education, prompting many institutions to carefully consider how they report critical data. The university’s case sheds light on broader issues within academia, particularly the pressures to maintain prestige within a competitive educational landscape.