Move over U.S. New & World Report, there is a new college rating guide on the newsstands, and its making waves. Washington Monthly, a low-circulation progressive political journal has jumped in with a new ‘best colleges’ list. But rather than using Ivy League and Big Ten colleges and universities as measuring sticks, the folks at Washington Monthly rates schools for the social mobility, the quality of research they produce and the percentage of graduates who opt for public service. Or like the Washington Monthly says in its editorial, “Other college guides ask what collages can do for you. We ask what colleges are doing for the country.”

College rating guides are a big business and have often been criticized for creating hype and hysteria in the college admission process. The editors of Washington Monthly don’t reject the idea of college ratings, but they do feel the usual ranking services fail to measure factors that college-bound students should use into their decision-making. Their innovative rating system is gaining notice in education circles and the results are surprising – some of the great education “brand names” like Princeton are finding themselves listed behind state universities and little known liberal arts colleges.

• The Social Mobility Factor – Here the editors of Washington Monthly are looking for is what kind of opportunity does a college or university offer to students from the lower end of the economic ladder. Analyzing the number of students receiving Pell Grants, and factoring in incoming students’ SAT scores and actual graduation rates gives an indication of how well a school performs as an engine of social mobility.

• The Research Factor – The total college or university expenditure for research, the percentage of graduating students that continue on to PhD programs, and the percentage of science and engineering PhDs awarded are all considerations. In addition, the ratio of faculty members receiving prestigious awards and are members of the National Academies in relation to all full-time faculty members are also important factors.

• The Service Factor – How many students participate in ROTC? What percentage of graduates goes on to participate in programs like the Peace Corp, Teach for America or AmeriCorps? What percentage of Federal work-study funds is channeled into community service programs?

Employment experts and economic advisers are in agreement that education is the cornerstone to a sound future. However, these days a four-year college degree comes with significant sticker shock. If you’re college-bound, its time to get smart about the economics of your education and what it will mean – long-term – to you. The Washington Monthly College Guide gives an innovative and refreshing look at colleges and universities. On line services like Top-Colleges can also help give you an overview and present education alternatives. Using these tools will make you a smart, savvy education consumer, and insure your investment in that college degree will pay lifelong dividends.