UPDATED: August 4, 8:30 p.m.

Rankings of the leading party schools in the nation were announced Monday, and Syracuse University has claimed the top spot.

The university’s ranking jumped four spots from No. 5 in the 2014 edition and nine spots from No. 10 in 2013 edition of the Princeton Review’s “The Best 379 Colleges.” This year’s version also has SU’s sports scene rated third best among the 379 schools.

The 2015 edition contains 62 top 20-lists reflecting students’ satisfaction with professors, sports programs, campus dining and other elements of a university. Princeton Review conducts a yearly nationwide survey of 130,000 students, averaging 343 students per campus.

According to the Princeton Review website, “Schools on the ‘Party Schools’ list are those at which surveyed students’ answers indicated a combination of low personal daily study hours (outside of class), high usages of alcohol and drugs on campus, and high popularity on campus of frats/sororities.”

SU officials released a statement saying they were disappointed with the party school rankings and emphasizing that the university’s reputation for academic excellence remains recognized across the world.

“We do not aspire to be a party school,” the statement said. “With new leadership, we are very focused on enhancing the student experience, both academically and socially. Students, parents, faculty and the full Syracuse University community should expect to see important and positive changes in the year ahead that will improve and enhance the student environment in every aspect.”

SU’s No. 1 title makes it the first private institution to top the list since 1993, when Tulane University was awarded the distinction. The news of being ranked the top party school generated reactions from many students and alumni, many taking to social media to share their opinions.

Peter Elliott, a 2012 alumnus of the College of Arts and Sciences, agreed with university officials and said the ranking belittles the value of an undergraduate degree.

“I feel like more and more employers are looking at the reputations of universities and their academic strength,” Elliott said. “We want to be seen as a school with very motivated and academically committed students, not students interested in partying all the time.”

Sophomore newspaper and online journalism major Delaney Arias said she wasn’t surprised that SU was rated as the No. 1 party school and that she feels indifferent, but “a tad ashamed,” about the situation.

“We have a lot of other qualities other than being a party school,” Arias said, “and I just hope that people still take SU seriously.”

While some continued to express their disappointment, others proudly embraced the university’s new title.

Senior public relations major Ben Glidden said he thinks it says a lot that SU can have both prestigious academic programs and a party school reputation.

“What I am proud of is that we know the balance between strong academics and having a really great time,” Glidden said. “If you go to college and just do all academics, you’re missing out on a huge chunk of real-life experience and knowing how to balance out a social life.”

Glidden added the news might bring a boost of enthusiasm for the new freshmen, many of which have undoubtedly heard stories and are eager for the school year to begin.

“It might just make them all the more excited to come,” he said.

The University of Iowa, which claimed the title last year, dropped to No. 2. University of California, Santa Barbara, West Virginia University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign finished out the top five in the list of party schools.

The State University of New York of College of Environmental Science and Forestry was also one of the eight new colleges that were added to this year’s book, along with Assumption College, Coe College, College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University, Gordon College, Randolph-Macon College, Siena College and University of Louisville.

Published on August 4, 2014 at 2:57 pm

Contact Clare: clramire@syr.edu