Syracuse University follows dropping trend in university rankings

Syracuse University ranked 62nd in the 2012 U.S. News & World Report National University Rankings, published Tuesday. This is a seven-spot drop from 55th in the World Report's 2011 rankings.

This is not the first time the university has dropped in this list. SU stayed put in the list's 58th spot in 2010 and 2009. In 2008, SU sat at 53rd, three spots lower than it's 50th ranking in 2007. Between 2006 and 2004, the rankings have jumped around between 52 and 50.

Chancellor Nancy Cantor published a letter on the university's website Tuesday, which said the rankings did not reflect the changes the university has experienced in the past few years.

"Our strategy is to be right there in this new landscape, expanding our reach at a time when we believe universities need to look outward and engage," Cantor said in the letter. "We do that in our scholarship worldwide and as an anchor institution in our community, and we are doing it by focusing on reaching the students of tomorrow. And we are succeeding – with or without the imprimatur of popular magazine rankings."

Attempts to contact U.S. News & World Report were not successful as of Wednesday afternoon.

SU tied for 62nd place with five other universities - Northeastern University, Purdue University, Southern Methodist University, University of Georgia and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Harvard University and Princeton University tied for the top spot, and several universities tied for the lowest ranking of 194.

Other universities in New York that made the list include: Columbia University (4), Cornell University (15), New York University (33), University of Rochester (35), and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (50).