If you’re happy and you know it and you really want to show it, complete a survey? Wondering which elite university in America boasts the happiest students? According to The Princeton Review, which conducted a survey asking students to agree or disagree with the statement, “I am happy at my school,” Texas Christian University tops the list. Students just love TCU. Placing second? That would be Denison University. Have you hardly heard of these places, or is that just us?

Top Universities with Happy Students

Among highly selective universities, Tulane University is ranked #11, Harvey Mudd College is ranked #16, Mount Holyoke College is ranked #19, the University of Richmond is ranked #23, Vanderbilt University is ranked #24, and the University of Texas at Austin is ranked #25. Notice a trend? We do! Among the elite universities featured in the Princeton Review’s top 25 happiest universities ranking, several are located in the South, including Tulane, Richmond, Vanderbilt, and UT Austin.

And as far as the rest? They’re schools that are anything but highly selective. Could it be that elite schools have highly competitive campus cultures that stifle student happiness? Or is it just that students at elite schools, which are primarily located in the northeastern United States, are not as likely to beam and gush about their well-being as their counterparts in more passionate places in the south? Hence, the importance of transparency regarding the survey methodology that companies like The Princeton Review use to create rankings like this one.

Highly Selective College	Ranking, Princeton Review’s “Happiest Students”
Tulane University	#11
Harvey Mudd College	#16
Mount Holyoke College	#19
University of Richmond	#23
Vanderbilt University	#24
University of Texas at Austin	#25

College Rankings Are Already Suspect. Happiness Rankings Even More So.

We’re not so sure this survey is particularly scientific. Were these students first-year students only? Seniors? Were they students who ate pizza for dinner or chocolate pudding for dessert? Were they only students who received SAT or ACT tutoring from, you guessed it, The Princeton Review (how 1980s of them!)? Who knows, because we can’t find any explanation for the sampling population of this survey, even within the company’s longer explanation for its methodology, beyond the following:

Happiest Students: Based on how strongly students agree or disagree with the statement, “I am happy at my school.”

But, in any case, congratulations to Tulane, Vanderbilt, and all the other elite universities with apparently, at least according to The Princeton Review, the happiest students.

Picking a College is About More Than College Rankings

Don’t get us wrong. Happiness is an incredibly important factor when choosing which college to choose. And if a ranking like this one were actually reliable for determining happiness, we would be all for it. But the reality is that far more important than reported happiness is the fit, academically, extracurricularly, and holistically, between a student and their school. If your ambition is to be the world’s foremost urban planner (A.K.A. your singular hook is urban planning) and your school of choice has no urban planning resources, well, your happiness may just be affected!

Thus is the importance of thorough research into the schools you apply to in your senior year of high school. And what better way to conduct such research than to solicit the help of a former elite college admissions officer who knows which factors to weigh and which to disregard during this process.

Ivy Coach’s Assistance With College Selection and Long-Term Student Happiness

We at Ivy Coach are experts in assessing which schools you’re likely to not only get into, but thrive at once you arrive on campus. We will work with you and your child to develop a robust list of colleges that not only take into account the odds of your child’s success in admission, but also their long-term happiness as a student on campus.

To enlist our help in optimizing your child’s odds of admission to the school of their dreams, fill out our complimentary consultation form, and we’ll be in touch with an outline of our services.