We're the first to recognize that the endless rankings from The Daily Beast are anything but scientific. This week, the Beast turned to measure that most immeasurable of things: happiness, specifically happiness on college campuses — and a Houston school is near the top of the list.

Rice University made No. 4 on the list of America's happiest colleges, based on the grades students gave their campus dorms, dining and nightlife options, as compiled by College Prowler; the average indebtedness at graduation and the rate of freshman retention, according to U.S. News & World Report; the ratio of student organizations to students enrolled, from U.S. News and World Report; and the percentage of sunny days as reported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

While there are some problems with these criteria — the ratio of student organizations to students ranks a club with three members the same as a booster squad with several hundred, for example, and would be better replaced with a percentage of students who participate in campus organizations and activities — it's a pretty good indicator of student satisfaction and involvement in their university. Making the jump from a satisfied and involved student body to a happy one is not too crazy an assertion.

So why, we wondered, was Rice last week ranked No. 20 on a similar Daily Beast list of the most stressed-out colleges?

As far as we can tell, it's because the criteria the Web site used to determine stress are much less relevant to college life.

Weighted most heavily are cost of the financial institution and the academic rigor of the school, Which automatically puts most private and elite schools at the top of the list. But let's be honest: not every college student has to worry about the cost associated with their attendance. And going to a competitive school, if one has the ability to handle it, is not in and of itself a stressor. Rice, for example, has an astronomical retention rate — 96.8 percent. According to my friends,Texas Tech told students in their matriculation that one out of three of them would not graduate. Which do you think is more stressful?

The happiness measures of debt at graduation and freshman retention rate are much more clear indicators of the financial and academic health of students. And the acceptance rate? Once accepted, the acceptance rate has virtually no impact on a college student's life or stress levels. It's just another mark against top schools, which is why nearly the entirety of the list is made up of respected private universities.

And the idea that schools with strong, competitive engineering programs equal a higher stress level? While engineering is certainly one of the most challenging disciplines, that remains the case for engineering students across the spectrum, regardless of the size or prestige of their program. Conversely non-engineers are not subject to stress by osmosis, regardless of whether the program enrolls five or fifty percent of a campus's students.