Despite recent efforts to curb binge drinking among UW-Madison students, the Princeton Review named UW-Madison second on the national top 10 list of party schools.
The ranking, which was released Aug. 18, gauges the amount of alcohol consumption, drug use, fraternities and sororities and time spent on school work to determine the list.
However, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Paul Barrows said he believes UW-Madison's ranking fails to reflect reality.
\I don't put a lot of credence in those kind of reviews,"" he said. ""I don't think they're founded on a scientific basis and their whole methodology is suspect.""
According to a study by the Policy Alternative Community and Education Coalition, in 2001, when UW-Madison ranked 10 on the list, 66 percent of UW-Madison students were binge drinkers. Now, though binge drinking has dropped 4 percent, UW-Madison's ranking rose.
Despite the climb, Barrows said he thinks the list will not harm PACE's efforts to moderate drinking because many are skeptical of such studies.
""A lot of people are real dubious about a lot of these rankings,"" he said. ""We think we've made some strides working with students and others on campus to find very popular and exciting alternatives to the bar scene.""
Dustin DiMarco, manager of State Street Brats, 603 State St., said while he has not observed the party scene at many other schools, he is not surprised about the ranking, citing that UW-Madison is traditionally among the top 10 list.
""I just know that anytime someone talks about going to a ball game or visiting another school for a football game, that the Badger fans always out-drink the other team. I guess that's evidence of a party school,"" he said.
