It’s never good to make a list like this one. Once a year, The Princeton Review ranks the universities with the least happy students — the students who just aren’t finding fulfillment at their chosen school. And while there’s a fair amount of turnover, a few schools are making the list every year. Regulars include the New Jersey Institute of Technology, Montana Tech of the University of Montana, the United States Naval Academy, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Clarkson University, the United States Merchant Marine Academy, and the Illinois Institute of Technology.
While The Princeton Review‘s “quality of life” rankings are based entirely on student surveys, a study conducted in 2014 shows that the rankings can actually affect application numbers. A school that makes the “happiest students” list will see applications go up an average of 2.9%, while a school that makes the “least happy students” list will see applications go down by 5%.
The survey is sent to students at nearly 400 universities, and this ranking is determined by answers to the question, “Overall, how happy are you?” To see which schools made the list over the past four years, check out the chart below.
Ranking The ‘Least Happy Students’ From 2014 to 2017
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| 2017 Rank & School | 2017 Rank | 2016 Rank | 2015 Rank | 2014 Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana Tech of the University of Montana | 1 | 7 | 20 | 10 |
| New Jersey Institute of Technology | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| United States Coast Guard Academy | 3 | 4 | 15 | NR |
| United States Naval Academy | 4 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
| Clarkson University | 5 | 9 | 10 | 9 |
| University of Hawaii at Manoa | 6 | 5 | 4 | 6 |
| United States Merchant Marine Academy | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| McGill University | 8 | 8 | NR | 11 |
| Simmons College | 9 | NR | NR | NR |
| Illinois Institute of Technology | 10 | 10 | 6 | 16 |
| Marlboro College | 11 | NR | NR | NR |
| University of California – Berkeley | 12 | NR | NR | NR |
| University of Mary Washington | 13 | NR | NR | NR |
| Wheaton College (MA) | 14 | NR | NR | NR |
| University of Louisville | 15 | NR | NR | NR |
| Transylvania University | 16 | NR | NR | NR |
| St. John’s University | 17 | 11 | NR | 17 |
| University of New Orleans | 18 | 13 | 16 | NR |
| California State University, Stanislaus | 19 | 14 | NR | NR |
| Portland State University | 20 | 16 | NR | NR |
| Manhattanville College | NR | 1 | 5 | 11 |
| United States Military Academy | NR | 12 | 13 | 5 |
| Wesleyan College | NR | 15 | NR | NR |
| Duquesne University | NR | 17 | 7 | NR |
| City University of New York – Queens College | NR | 18 | NR | 14 |
| Alfred University | NR | 19 | 12 | NR |
| Indiana University of Pennsylvania | NR | 20 | 14 | 8 |
| Marywood University | NR | NR | 1 | 7 |
| Suffolk University | NR | NR | 8 | NR |
| State University of New York – Stony Brook University | NR | NR | 11 | NR |
| City University of New York – Baruch College | NR | NR | 17 | 3 |
| The University of South Dakota | NR | NR | 18 | NR |
| The Catholic University of America | NR | NR | 19 | NR |
| The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art | NR | NR | NR | 13 |
| University of Maine | NR | NR | NR | 15 |
| Rider University | NR | NR | NR | 18 |
| Wesleyan University (GA) | NR | NR | NR | 19 |
| University of North Dakota | NR | NR | NR | 20 |
Source: The Princeton Review
DON’T MISS UNIVERSITIES WITH THE LEAST HAPPY STUDENTS (2010-2014)
