Lyss Welding

Lyss Welding leads survey initiatives and data reporting for BestColleges’ Data Center. She specializes in interpreting national data on student issues and finding data that matters to students. 

Lyss began her career assisting research at the University of Chicago for a longitudinal language development study. From there, Lyss joined the Office of Learning and Evaluation at the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago to help evaluate the outcomes of children and youth participants in YMCA programs. 

Lyss joined BestColleges in 2021, initially reporting on educational pathways in the skilled trades. In 2023, she became the lead editor and analyst overseeing BestColleges’ Data Center. 

Through the Data Center, Lyss designs and reports on student and school administrator surveys, tracks trends in higher education, and helps inform the ranking methodology for BestColleges’ college ranking lists.

Lyss has presented on best practices in data use and collection at conferences such as Data Science for Social Good and Illinois Continuous Quality Improvement. Her work has been cited by NPR, Forbes, Investopedia, and the Council on Foreign Relations.

Lyss holds a bachelor’s degree in linguistics from the University of Chicago.

Media Mentions

• WGN Radio interviews Lyss Welding on colleges with the best return on investment.
• NTV News interviews Lyss Welding on the why behind the University of Nebraska system budget shortfall.
• NPR references Lyss Welding’s research on the college enrollment decline.
• Forbes cites Lyss Welding’s research on college students’ political beliefs and voting.
• Investopedia cites Lyss Welding’s research on student loan debt.
• Council on Foreign Relations cites Lyss Welding’s research on student loan debt.