Chapman University is rated among the top universities in the country, according to this year’s rankings from US News and World Report. The private institution ranked 125th in the nation in the report.
“We are thrilled to be moved into the category of National Universities,” President Daniele C. Struppa said in a statement from the university’s news site. “It is a great recognition of the increased quality, stature and reputation of Chapman. We have record student applications, distinguished faculty who are all very active in their disciplines, and incredible research and scholarly activity being recognized throughout the world. All of this has contributed to Chapman no longer being classified as a regional university.”
The growth of the school’s doctoral and professional degree programs over the last decade have led it to be reclassified as an R2 status school with higher research activity in 2018.
Chapman University, having reached national status, expects to attract more international students looking to attend universities in the United States.
“Some countries restrict students from attending foreign universities unless they are on a list consisting of the most highly regarded universities in the world. Being in the national rankings gives us more exposure internationally and can only help when we recruit international students,” said Chapman Provost Glenn Pfeiffer on Chapman University’s website.
Ryan Marhoefer, 21, a senior who is majoring in business at Chapman, told The Epoch Times about his experience attending the university.
“Chapman offers many great programs like ‘Walk on Wall Street,’ where we have professors take Chapman students to New York to talk to Wall Street traders and bankers and many students have gotten job offers right there on the spot. Chapman’s business school career center is very useful, and it is open to alumni as well,” he said.
Taylor Duncker, 21, also a business finance major, expressed her satisfaction with her time at the school, but said there was room for improvement.
“Chapman uses a job site called Handshake to link students with jobs and other opportunities,“ she said. ”We have a career and development center, and one dedicated to only the business school as well. They are helpful with resumes and other advice like that. They also put on events such as job/internship fairs and mock interview events. It’s all somewhat helpful, but I feel like there could be even more in my opinion.”
Gabriella Brandom, a creative writing major, spoke about how the school offered the unique major she wanted. She also appreciated the small community feel that the school has maintained.
“The main reason I chose Chapman is because of the Creative Writing program – the other schools I was considering only had the option for an English major, but none focused on Creative Writing. I also was drawn to Chapman’s small student body, because I went to a small charter school in high school and wanted to be in a small community. Chapman is also close to my home, and staying close to my family was important to me in choosing a college,” she said.
Chapman University, founded in 1861 as Hesperian College, was unusual at the time in admitting students regardless of sex or race. The school, located in the quaint Old Town portion of the city of Orange, has a fairly small student body in comparison to other traditional universities, with just over 9,100 undergraduate students and 2,100 graduate students.
Chapman offers 110 areas of study, with 49 majors and 61 minors and hosts ten schools and colleges on its campus. The most well-known of these colleges include the Argyros School of Business and Economics, the Dodge College of Film and the Dale E. Fowler School of Law.
The US News and World Report releases a report on the best ranked schools in the nation on an annual basis. This year’s top five schools were Princeton, Harvard, Columbia, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Yale.
