American public ranks Penn State one of the best

American public ranks Penn State one of the best

Princeton, NJ -- A new national survey by the folks at the Gallup organization reveals Penn State is considered one of the top universities in the nation by the general public.

Respondents to a July Gallup Poll were given the opportunity to name two schools in answer to the question: "All in all, what would you say is the best college or university in the United States?"

Penn State tied for 11th nationally, with four other schools: the University of Texas, Texas A&M University, Ohio State and the University of North Carolina.

Number one on the national survey was Harvard, with 24 percent of the vote. Stanford and Yale tied for second on the survey, with both schools receiving 11 percent of the vote.

Among poll respondents who live in the eastern United States, Penn State tied for fourth in national reputation, behind Harvard (36 percent), Yale (16 percent) and Princeton (7 percent), and tied with MIT, Penn and Stanford (all with five percent of the vote).

The survey results are based on telephone interviews with 1,003 national adults, aged 18 and over.

The Gallup organization drew some comparisons with the recent U.S. News & World Report annual college rankings when it issued its poll results.

In the U.S. News rankings , Penn State was listed considerably higher on the reputational score than it did on the overall rankings, which are based in many cases on institutional resources. Penn State, which only receives about 12 percent of its funding from the state, does not have the resources that are available to many public institutions.