WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue University has been voted America’s No. 4 most trusted public university, and No. 21 overall, in Morning Consult’s “Most Trusted Universities” study measuring how deeply the public currently trusts universities “to do the right thing.”
In recent years, public trust in U.S. institutions has faltered, leading to declining enrollment rates and increasing tuition costs at many universities.
Purdue sits behind only William & Mary (No. 12 overall), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (No. 18 overall), and Clemson University (No. 19 overall) as public universities on the list that ranks the top 135 doctoral research universities. Purdue is the highest ranked among public Big Ten universities, and second overall behind Northwestern.
“We don’t know which of Purdue’s characteristics produced this encouraging ranking,” said President Mitch Daniels, “but we are frequently commended for being affordable, academically rigorous, and protective of free inquiry and diversity of viewpoints. It’s rightly said that trust is not given, it’s earned. At Purdue, we know that trust must be constantly re-earned.”
The survey was conducted in June 2022 among more than 11,000 U.S. adults and 1,000 high school students ages 16 to 18. According to the report, universities are sorted by net trust, or the share of respondents who said they trust each brand to do the right thing “a lot” or “some” minus the share who said “not much” or “not at all.”
The Morning Consult list is the latest top ranking added to Purdue’s portfolio, which also includes being named a top 10 public university and No. 7 best value school in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal and Times of Higher Education.
As the only university named a “Brand that Matters” by Fast Company in 2021, Purdue continues to recruit high-caliber students by prioritizing accessibility and affordability, despite the report showing Gen Z respondents being 14 percentage points less likely to trust U.S. higher education compared to baby boomers. As higher education costs have grown, Purdue has frozen tuition for 11 consecutive years, saving Boilermakers more than a billion dollars since 2012-13. As 40 million Americans have life experience and some college credit, but no degree, Purdue Global is Purdue’s accredited and affordable online solution designed for working adults who seek an online education they can trust. While the Indiana Commission for Higher Education reports significant declines in Indiana high school students going to college, Purdue has proven to be an exception, countering the college-going rate with continued year-over-year enrollment increases.
About Purdue University
Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked in each of the last four years as one of the 10 Most Innovative universities in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://stories.purdue.edu.
Information: Trevor Peters, peter237@purdue.edu
