The University and College Accountability Network (U-CAN) provides information for prospective students and their parents to compare American private colleges and universities across a wide variety of characteristics. Users can search for participating institutions and compare important data and information, including admissions, cost, financial aid, popular majors, and campus safety. Links to the institutions' websites provide a "virtual campus tour."
U-CAN was publicly launched on September 26, 2007. At the time of the launch, more than 600 institutions had volunteered to participate. The network was developed by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (
NAICU).
On September 17, 2008, U-CAN launched enhanced features designed in response to focus groups. Features included an advanced search that increased the number of searchable fields from three to 17.
U-CAN represents the first time that colleges and universities have voluntarily joined and self-developed a system to provide data and information for prospective students.
New York Times Article
/ref> Other systems are under development by the , the American Association of State Colleges and Universities
The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) is an organization of state-supported colleges and universities that offer degree programs leading to bachelor's, master's or doctoral degrees. AASCU grew out of the Association o ...
, and the American Association of Universities
The Association of American Universities (AAU) is an organization of American research universities devoted to maintaining a strong system of academic research and education. Founded in 1900, it consists of 63 universities in the United States ( ...
. These are expected to be released publicly in 2009,
As of September 2008, information on more than 660 colleges and universities was available to the public, and another 75 had agreed to participate but had not yet publicly posted their data.
External links
U-CAN page
* ttp://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/06/26/accountability/ Inside Higher Ed Article
Note on legislative call from Senate Republican Policy Committee
Compilation of recent U-CAN media coverage
References
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Universities and colleges in the United States
University and college rankings