BACKGROUNDER - No. 3929 - Rightly Rated: New Survey Affirms Colleges Promoting Virtue and Tolerance

Oct 15, 2026

A Heritage Foundation Center for Education Policy backgrounder argues that college ratings should reflect post-graduation outcomes tied to the purposes of higher education, not only inputs like test scores. Citing a College Pulse survey of 7,349 alumni and current undergraduates across 987 institutions, it reports that students at “green” colleges show stronger results for family, faith, community, morals, political tolerance, lower antisemitism, and greater personal well-being compared with “yellow” and “red” colleges.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Key Takeaways

Ratings and Outcomes Framework

Evidence From Survey Results

Married Alumni and Students

Attitudes Toward Divorce

Family, Faith, and Community

Desire to Have Children

BACKGROUNDER No. 3929 | OctOber 8, 2025 ceNter FOr eDUcAtION POLIcY Rightly Rated: New Survey Affirms Colleges Promoting Virtue and Tolerance Jay P. Greene, Jonathan Butcher, and Madison Marino Doan KEY TAKEAWAYS the ratings in Heritage’s college guide“choosing college with confidence” are built on a broad understanding of higher education—including the shaping of character. current and former students of the guide’s best-rated colleges had the best outcomes for family, faith, community, morals, political tolerance, and well-being. these outcomes confirm Heritage’s ratings, as students of these colleges are more likely to develop into the adults that higher education is intended to produce. The proof isin the pudding. The ratings issued by any college rating system should corre spond to outcomes related to the purposes of higher education. Some college rating systems are based largely on inputs, like the average SAT scores of incoming students, but do not consider post-graduation outcomes. Other college rating systems are built exclusively around the economic success of graduates, and do not factor in the full range of outcomes, including living a good life and personal well-being. Of course, successful universities and colleges should equip students with the skills needed to prosper in the workforce, but education, in general, and higher education, in particular, can and should do much more. In its essence, education is a process of shaping character. The Heritage Foundation’s Center for Education Policy wanted to know if graduates ofthe schools it rated in Heritage’s “Choosing College with this paper, in its entirety, can be found at [https://report.heritage.org/bg3929](https://report.heritage.org/bg3929) the Heritage Foundation | 214 Massachusetts Avenue, Ne | Washington, Dc 20002 | (202) [546-4400 | heritage.org](546-4400 | heritage.org)[ ](546-4400 | heritage.org)Nothing written here is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of The Heritage Foundation or as an attempt to aid or hinder the passage of any bill before Congress. CHART 1 Married Alumni and Students Percentage of married alumni Green Colleges Yellow Colleges Red Colleges 11.9% 8.6% 23.8% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% Percentage of married students Green Colleges Yellow Colleges Red Colleges 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% NOTE: Green colleges are categorized as a “Great Option,” yellow colleges are categorized as “Worth Considering,”and red colleges are categorized as “Not Recommended.” SOURCE: College Pulse survey of 7,349 college alumni and current undergraduates, conducted March–May 2025, and Heritage Foundation research. For more information, see the methodology. [BG3929](BG3929 A heritage.org)[ A](BG3929 A heritage.org)[ heritage.org](BG3929 A heritage.org) Confidence”guide1 are prepared to lead a life committed to family, faith, and values, and demonstrate the virtues on which a healthy society depends, as well as one filled with economic and personal success. The ratings in “Choosing College with Confidence” are built around this broader understanding of higher education. To validate that the ratings correspond to the diverse outcomes expected of successful colleges and universities, Heritage commissioned College Pulse to administer a survey to more than 7,000 current and former students atthe 987 institutions rated in the college guide to measure a variety of outcomes. The results, collected independently from the process of rating the colleges, confirm that colleges rated green (“great option”) have significantly better outcomes than those rated yellow (“worth considering”) or red (“not recommended”). In particular, the current and former students at green universities had better outcomes related to family, faith, and community. They exhibited stronger moral judgment. They demonstrated higher levels of political tolerance and lower levels of antisemitism. And they reported greater personal well-b

FAQs

What standard does the report say college rating systems should use?

College ratings should align with outcomes related to the purposes of higher education, not just inputs like incoming SAT scores or economic success after graduation.

What survey evidence does the report use to support its ratings?

It cites a College Pulse survey of 7,349 college alumni and current undergraduates across 987 institutions rated in Heritage’s college guide.

How do the report’s findings differ across green, yellow, and red colleges?

Students associated with green colleges report better outcomes across areas including family, faith, community, stronger moral judgment, higher political tolerance, lower antisemitism, and greater personal well-being.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Maya Linwood