According to a newly-released Princeton Review college guide, Iowa State’s students are jocks who love intramural sports and rarely study.

“The Best 351 Colleges,” a publication put out by the Princeton Review, ranked Iowa State 11th in the category “Everyone plays intramural sports,” 13th in “Students (almost) never study (reported low number of hours they study every day)” and 16th for “Jock school.”

The survey also revealed students who participated in the survey believe: “The campus is beautiful,” “Campus is easy to get around,” “Athletic facilities are great,” “Great library,” “Great computer facilities,” “Student newspaper is popular,” “Lots of beer drinking” and “Frats and sororities dominate social scene.”

The University of Iowa was ranked No. 1 in “Professors make themselves scarce (low accessibility rating)” and 4th in “TAs teach too many upper-level courses.”

The University of Northern Iowa was not ranked.

The 800-page guide book, which surveyed 106,245 students at 351 top colleges, is in its twelfth edition and the “longest ongoing student survey of its scope,” said Erik Olson, a senior editor of the book.

New York City-based Princeton Review began in 1981, specializing in test preparation courses such as the SAT or ACT. Since then it has developed into a large publishing division with more than 198 titles with Random House.

“The book is the best snapshot of student opinion,” Olson said. “It’s targeted toward [current] college students and high school students and their parents.”

Olson said he believes the book is a good portrayal of current student opinion.

“Most of the time, students will post feedback comments such as, ‘Wow! You really nailed my school.'” Olson said.

Olson said he encourages current college students to go online to www.survey.review.com, post their feedback to the rankings and participate in the survey.

“I would encourage ISU students to participate in the survey because they’ve gone though this process before and they should have some empathy [toward incoming students],” Olson said. “Current students can share their wonderful advice then, not just to their brothers or sisters, but the thousands of readers of our guidebook.”

Olson said the book “should not substitute for a campus visit, but is the next best thing.”

He also acknowledged many times college administrators will dispute both the rankings and the accuracy of the survey.

Marc Harding, director of admissions at Iowa State, said he believes many students do not take much stock in college ranking books.

“There are so many rankings out there and frankly, they can be a bit confusing,” Harding said.

He added that incoming college students need to keep in mind the campus visit can be one of the most valuable components in their college search.

“The authors are looking to report things that are headline grabbing,” Harding said.

ISU Dean of Students Pete Englin said he does not believe the book’s survey results are “a true indication of Iowa State as an institution.”

“I really don’t take the Princeton Review very seriously,” Englin said. “Most people I know in higher education don’t. It’s designed to sell issues [and they are] somewhat sensational. The tests themselves are somewhat subjective.”

Emily Smith, freshman in art and design, said she did not use books like the Princeton Review as a resource in her college search.

“I don’t think a book can take the place of a college visit, but it can help you narrow down your search,” Smith said.