Koonin noted, however, that the publicity garnered by the U.S. News & World Report survey will probably help Caltech attract applicants and gain more recognition outside of the West Coast.

Caltech's jump from number four to number one in the rankings can largely be attributed to a change in the methodology of the U.S. News rankings.

The survey considers such factors as selectivity, faculty, graduation and retention rates, and financial resources. This year, the magazine put increased weight on a school's expenditure per student--a category in which Caltech, with its wealth of lab facilities, more than doubles the amount spent by Harvard, Princeton and Yale--as well as several other categories.

Koonin said Caltech's rise in the rankings from last year was due to changes in the survey's methodology, not to changes in Caltech. He adds that he expected the weightings to change again next year.

"Institutions change on a much longer time scale than the news cycle," he said.

Stephanie Lin '03 said she felt the rankings change had more to do with magazine sales than anything else.

"U.S. News changes its criteria each year to make the issue more interesting," Lin said. She added that she wasn't concerned by Harvard's drop in the rankings.

"Even if it's not number one, it's still Harvard."