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25 Colleges With the Worst Professors in 2011

Note: Here are the colleges with the best professors in 2011.
College students love to gripe about their professors, but which schools have more than their share of bad professors?

According to an analysis of millions of RateMyProfessors.com evaluations by an education think tank, the following 25 schools have the worst professors among 650 top schools that were surveyed.

25 Worst Colleges in 2011

  1. U.S. Merchant Marines Academy (NY)
  2. U.S. Coast Guard Academy (CT)
  3. Michigan Technological Academy
  4. University of Illinois, Chicago
  5. New Jersey Institute of Technology
  6. Milwaukee School of Engineering (WI)
  7. Tuskegee University (AL)
  8. Stevens Institute of Technology (NJ)
  9. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (NY)
  10. Worcester Polytechnic Institute (MA)
  11. Indiana State University
  12. Widnener University (PA)
  13. Bentley University (MA)
  14. Howard University (DC)
  15. Minnesota State University
  16. St. Cloud State University (MN)
  17. Oregon Institute of Technology
  18. Pace University (NY)
  19. Central Michigan University
  20. Western Michigan University
  21. Seton Hall University (NJ)
  22. University of Connecticut
  23. Clarkson University (NY)
  24. University of Toledo (OH)
  25. Truman State University (MO)
Two service academies belonging to the U.S. Merchant Marines and the U.S. Coast Guard had the misfortune of topping the list of the worst professors, according to an analysis conducted by the Center for College Affordability and Productivity, which is the think tank that generates Forbes' best colleges rankings. It's hard to argue that there is something intrinsic about the service academies that leads to poor teaching when you consider that West Point and the Air Force Academy have the No. 2 and No. 3 top professors on the best college professor list.

A significant number of schools that made it on this list are heavy on engineering majors, which is one of the most notoriously hard disciplines. A lot of students wash out of engineering schools. But then again, some engineering schools, including MIT and Cal Tech, do okay on the center's list. Out of the 650 schools that the center examined, MIT and Cal Tech had the 149th and the 148th best professors respectively.

You can find the breakdown of professor ratings for each school by checking the center's 2011 component rankings. Just look for the column with the abbreviation RMP. Here is the methodology the center uses to compile the scores.

Lynn O'Shaughnessy is author of The College Solution, an Amazon bestseller, and Shrinking the Cost of College workbook. She also writes her own college blog at The College Solution.

Read more on The College Solution:

Where Professors Send Their Children to College
5 Reasons to Attend a Liberal Arts College
U.S. Merchant Marines Academy by USCG Press. CC 2.0.
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