For years, Northeastern University worked on its image and regard to rank as one of U.S. News & World Report’s top 100 universities in the nation. Yesterday, the university earned a top ranking on a list that it might not have wanted.
NU was ranked the No. 2 on a list of the “50 Druggiest Colleges” published by the site The Daily Beast.
The website said it came up with the ranking system based on available data about on-campus drug arrests, illicit statewide drug use for 18- to 25-year-olds and the “drug scene” grades posted on the student review site College Prowler.
According to the site, NU had 75 on-campus arrests in 2009 for drug violations.
However, students said they disagreed with the findings. “I think it’s kind of arbitrary,” said Brittan Williams, a senior.
While they said some drugs were easy to find on campus, hard drugs were not common. “Everyone smokes weed, but not everyone does harder drugs,” said Lauren, a third-year student who did not want to give her last name.
The news of the rankings spread quickly as many students were already aware of the listing when asked about it. They said they were concerned about the reputation of their eventual alma mater.
“It bugs me that this is the connotation with the school that I’m about to graduate from,” Williams said.
