Columbia University drops from No. 2 to No. 18 in U.S. News ranking after admitting mistake

Columbia University, whose alumni include founding father Alexander Hamilton and former President Barack Obama, dropped to No. 18 in the U.S. News & World Report's annual college rankings after admitting it had submitted inaccurate data in earlier years. 

The Ivy League institution had ranked No. 2 in the annual list in 2021, prompting one of its own professors to question the accuracy of the information the school had been supplying to U.S. News & World Report for its annual analysis, which was released on Monday. 

The magazine's annual rankings provide far more than bragging rights to the top universities, as the standings are used as recruitment tools to convince high school students to apply to highly selective colleges. For its part, U.S. News & World Report said in a Sunday post that it "relies on schools to accurately report their data," which includes information on issues ranging from graduation rates to the share of faculty holding terminal degrees, which indicates the highest degree available within specific fields.