In recent years, as the economic center of the U.S. has shifted westward, the famous colleges of the east have fallen on hard times. Princeton's undergraduate program may still be the best in the country, but its graduate school has too few departments and students, which has doubtless affected its ranking.
近些年來，由於經濟重心西移，美國東部各名校都有逐漸「沒落」的趨勢。普大大學部或許仍是全美頂尖優秀的，但研究所科系少、人數少、專業院校更少，無疑地大大影響了排名。