Reed College's Alumni Most Liberal, Air Force Academy's Most Conservative, Survey Says

Which Colleges Have Most Liberal, Conservative Alumni?
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 20: Pilot Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger arrives to the 9th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel on January 20, 2012 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 20: Pilot Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger arrives to the 9th Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards at The Beverly Hilton hotel on January 20, 2012 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images)

What do Steve Jobs, designer Emilio Pucci and DJ pioneer Dr. Demento have in common?

They all attended the school with the most liberal alumni -- Reed College in Portland, Ore., says a new survey by The Alumni Factor, a school-ranking publication.

The Air Force Academy has the most conservative alumni, the survey said, with notables that include several astronauts, Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich and miracle-on-the-Hudson pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger.

The rest of the universities near the top of each list probably won't surprise either, but they make for fun debate. 'Tis the season, no?

Rounding out the top 10 on the conservative side are Brigham Young University, Auburn, U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Military Academy, Texas A & M, University of Mississippi, Georgia Institute of Technology, Baylor, and the University of Alabama.

Completing the most-liberal top 10 are Oberlin, Macalester, Grinnell, Bard, Swarthmore, Haverford, Bryn Mawr, Wesleyan, and Smith.

The survey asked more than 42,000 college alumni questions about gay marriage, racial profiling, abortion rights, government healthcare and other social and political issues. Respondents had to say how much they agreed or disagreed with statements on the controversial topics, according to the press release.

In order to qualify for the survey, schools had to be rated among the top 177 by The Alumni Factor in terms of excellence, a spokesman told The Huffington Post.

It should also be noted that the study involved graduates, so dropout Jobs technically would not qualify. But he's Steve Jobs.

If you must have a Reed College digital trailblazer who got his degree there, try Wikipedia cofounder Larry Sanger. You know where to look it up.

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