The U.S. News and World Report ranked Brandeis the 34th best college in the nation — up one spot from last year — in their 2016 rankings, published on Sept. 9. Additionally, the University’s ranking in best value schools rose five places to 27th on the list.

The University shares the 34th best college ranking with the College of William and Mary, which was ranked 33rd in the 2015 list. The University also tied with William and Mary in the 2013 list.

Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Andrew Flagel wrote in an email to the Justice that the University has become more selective — admitting fewer students — in the past few years, which may have contributed to the rise in ranking.

Flagel also serves on the educational advisory board to the U.S. News and World Report, an unpaid position that involves discussion and review of the overall rankings procedure.

“One factor that was strong this year is the aggregation of admissions factors used in the ranking, which reflects how much more competitive it has been to gain admission to Brandeis in the last few years. That being said, it is important to note that Brandeis’ rank has remained in a very consistent range since the rankings started in the 1980’s. I don’t believe there is much to read in the very small fluctuations that we see year to year,” Flagel wrote.

Flagel also noted that the annual shifts in rankings have very little impact on application and enrollment numbers.

“Obviously we would rather be moving up the ranking than down, but Brandeis applications have been surging in years when our rank shifted in either direction,” he wrote.

He added that the process of deciding whether or not to attend a college depends a lot on what an individual wants in terms of academics and a community and is not necessarily dependent on a school’s rankings.

Flagel wrote that the annual rankings are decided largely on two factors.

“The largest factors in the ranking are driven by surveys, and those surveys are filled out by presidents, provosts and deans of admission with a vested interest in the outcome, as well as guidance counselors. The second largest factor is funding, as in the amount of funding spent per student and invested in faculty,... so schools that have the greatest funds will have a huge advantage in the rankings, whether or not those funds are being well spent,” he said.

Since 1983, the US News and World Report has annually ranked colleges in the United States based on various criteria including graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, admissions test scores of incoming students and alumni donations.

According to its website, the U.S. News and World Report puts the most emphasis on undergraduate academic reputations — including the peer assessment survey and high school counselors’ ratings of the school — and on graduation and retention rates. Both factors have an individual weight of 22.5 percent in determining the university’s score, according to the website.

The University has recently been ranked in the top percentiles of various lists: on Aug. 3 the Princeton Review named the University the top college for “Students Most Engaged in Community Service” and on Aug. 24, HerCampus named Brandeis the sixth best college for social justice activism.