GW fell seven spots to No. 70 this year on the U.S. News and World Report ranking of the best universities in the nation.

This year marks the second straight one in which the University dropped seven places on the U.S. News ranking, positioning GW at its lowest spot in at least a decade.

GW was ranked No. 56 in 2017 and has consistently stayed in the 50s for for the past several years. The University was listed at No. 51 in 2012 but was later bumped to “unranked” when officials admitted to inflating their admissions statistics for more than a decade.

The University has not hit below No. 50 on the ranking since it took No. 46 in 1998.

GW was ranked at least 13 spots beneath all of its 12 peer institutions. The University of Southern California remained at No. 22 and Georgetown University dropped two spots to No. 24. The University of Pittsburgh clocked in at No. 56.

The University tied with Clemson University, Texas A&M University College Station and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Princeton University held the top spot for the ninth consecutive year.

The rankings are determined by examining 15 metrics, like graduation rate and financial resources.