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Meredith Mason 

College Factual, an online portal designed to assist students in selecting a college, has released its top colleges for a degree in finance ranking and Bentley University stands at #4 overall in the U.S.

The outcomes-driven ranking is based on factors including school quality and alumni salary information. In 2015 College Factual ranked Bentley #1 in the U.S. in their business, management and marketing ranking.

College Factual’s “Top Colleges by Major/Field of Study” rankings place Bentley high in several additional fields:

  • #1 Accountancy
  • #1 Business/Managerial Economics
  • #4 Business Administration & Management
  • #6 Corporate Communications

College Factual uses data from IPEDS, the data collection program for the National Center for Education Statistics, and Payscale, the online salary, benefits and compensation information company, to create its rankings.

Several factors are considered in the methodology for determining Best Colleges by Major/Field of Study. They include:

  • Early career earnings: Because recent college graduates usually have very limited work experience, College Factual believes early career earnings often reflect the employer’s perception of the university and how well prepared graduates are for the workforce.
     
  • Mid-career earnings: Student’s mid-career earnings can reflect how well the university prepared them for the working world, allowing them to build steam in their career, as well as giving them a solid alumni base to make connections with.
     
  • Percent of graduates in that major relative to the school as a whole: This is a measure of how many students choose that major in the college as a whole. Identifying more popular majors or departments in quality schools shows where more of that school’s resources lie.
     
  • Related majors (“mPower Index”): Is the major at the school well-established with many similar majors surrounding it to make the overall program stronger? College Factual asserts students will have a better experience studying their chosen major at a school with lots of supporting programs where they can take related classes, meet like-minded students, and take advantage of a diverse set of professors and teachers.

College Factual’s full rankings and methodology explanations are featured on collegefactual.com.