In a recent story, a Daily Kent Stater reporter found that the Office of Global Education uses the International Student Barometer to determine how international students feel about different aspects of Kent State.

Students who come to Kent from all over the world get to rate how they feel about everything from food choices to how they were welcomed upon their arrival.

Two hundred and three university international programs participated in the survey, allowing the barometer to rank them based on feedback.

Unsurprisingly, we ranked very high in some areas and very low in others.

But one of our lowest grades came as a result of our transportation system. We were placed at 197 in that category.

It’s easy to see why PARTA’s system would confuse international students when you consider the cities where some of these students are from. After all, the system is often confusing to those who were born and raised here.

With uneven gaps between pickups and no electronic indication of when the next bus will arrive, this ranking shouldn’t shock PARTA.

Students who are coming from larger cities are used to knowing down to the minute when another bus (or train) is on the way. If they can’t do that, they have to rely on the printed schedules.

But how accurate are those schedules compared to the actual pickup times?

On top of that, the reporter’s source suggested the Stater leave out some of these rankings, adding that it might be confusing to the reader.

It’s not confusing; it’s honest.

Let’s be proud of how well our university receives students — we ranked at six out of the 203 for our welcome — and let’s embrace the idea that we have room for growth.

Sometimes it’s just better to admit a need for improvement.