Dear [NAME],

You may have heard the news: Times Higher Education, which has been serving global higher education for five decades, is launching a new US College Rankings that will put student learning – and the value added by colleges – at its heart. The ranking, developed after almost a year of consultation with US education sector bodies, academics and think-tanks, will include data on student outcomes, including completion and employment, and will feature the results of a unique, nation-wide survey of over 50,000 students from more than 1,000 institutions, examining their engagement in their learning.

We are concerned that [name institution] could miss out on this exciting opportunity, despite its qualities. Why? Because we cannot include [name institution] in the rankings without a statistically valid sample of students from your institution, and this could present a challenge for our research partners due to your relatively small size.

To ensure that we can include [name institution] in this new ranking, we need your help. We need you to help us raise awareness of the survey right across your current student community, whether undergraduate or graduate students. All we ask is that you publicise the survey to your students and promote the link to the survey website. You can do this through emails, or social media, your VLE or intranet, or through any other channel you see fit.

We ask that you raise general awareness right across the student community, and do not target any particular groups of students, and do not provide any guidance to students as to how they should complete the survey. Our statisticians will be analysing the results against our independent sources for any unusual patterns.

We are confident that his important new piece of research, with your support, will provide a valuable and unique insight into excellence in higher education.

You can learn more about our plans for a US College Rankings through this FAQ page.

Once you’ve shared the survey, drop us an email to introduce yourself, or to address any questions you may have about our plans.

If that’s not enough, we’re inviting you to Have Your Say at our free webinar on 30 June, register here. We will outline more details of the survey methodology for public feedback from university leaders and strategists like you on our approach.

Thank you for your engagement,.

The THE team