Kaplan and Newsweek recently announced that Rensselaer has been named to the elite “New Ivies” list, published in the 2007 Kaplan/Newsweek “How to Get into College Guide.” This year’s Kaplan/Newsweek guide introduces for the first time the “New Ivies”: colleges whose first-rate academic programs, combined with a population boom in top students, have fueled their rise in stature and favor among the nation’s top students, administrators, and faculty — edging them to a competitive status rivaling the Ivy League. Rensselaer was one of 25 schools selected as a “New Ivy,” based on admissions statistics as well as interviews with administrators, students, faculty, and alumni.

“It is wonderful to receive this recognition of Rensselaer’s historic strengths and validation of the extraordinary advances we have made under The Rensselaer Plan,” said Rensselaer President Shirley Ann Jackson. “We have been making major investments in our research and education facilities and in the overall quality of the student experience. These investments are paying off, attracting new faculty, students, and research partners from around the world. It is, indeed, an exciting time to be at Rensselaer.”

Rensselaer opened a new Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies in September 2004. Construction is under way on the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC). And in collaboration with IBM and New York state, Rensselaer recently announced the establishment of the Computational Center for Nanotechnology Innovations (CCNI), a $100 million partnership to create the world’s most powerful university-based supercomputing center.

The 264-page Kaplan/Newsweek guide will be available in bookstores on Aug. 21 and can also be ordered on Kaplan’s Web site or by calling (800) KAP-ITEM.

Newsweek story

Published August 14, 2006