Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 4 hours ago

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How can students know which colleges will give them the best educational value for their dollar? Renu Mukherjee, Neetu Arnold, and Rafael Mangual explore City Journal’s newly released College Rankings—and what makes them so different from other college-assessment guides. They discuss the experiences of conservative students on campus, the importance of ideological diversity, how social pressures shape student life, and the tension between meritocracy and identity in admissions.

To see the City Journal 2025 College Rankings, visit here: collegerankings.city-journal.org

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Renu Mukherjee: https://x.com/RenuMukherjee1
Neetu Arnold: https://x.com/neetu_arnold
Rafael Mangual: https://x.com/Rafa_Mangual

00:00 Introduction to City Journal's College Rankings
02:56 The Unique Approach of City Journal Rankings
05:44 Experiences of Conservative Students on Campus
08:48 The Impact of Ideological Diversity in Education
11:57 Navigating DEI and Meritocracy in Higher Education
14:52 Personal Experiences with Admissions and Identity
17:45 The Challenges of Being a Conservative Minority
20:55 Reflections on Self-Censorship in Academia
25:46 The Pressure of Social Conformity in Academia
29:54 Experiencing Ideological Polarization on Campus
33:54 The Performative Nature of Activism
39:53 Cultural Appreciation vs. Appropriation
44:40 The Future of Higher Education and College Rankings