Misc
Have Combustion Vehicle Sales Already Peaked?
Have Combustion Vehicle Sales Already Peaked?
Electric vehicle (EV) sales have grown rapidly over the past few years, but have they managed to make a dent in the global market?
To find out, we’ve visualized data from BloombergNEF that breaks down annual vehicle sales by three categories:
- Internal combustion (including traditional hybrids)
- Plug-in hybrids
- Battery electric
From this, we can see that EVs are definitely building up market share. In fact, combustion vehicle sales appear to have peaked in 2017.
Growth in EV Market Share
The following table lists global EV sales, as well as their relative market share.
Year | EV Sales | EV Market Share (%) |
---|---|---|
2013 | 206,000 | 0.2 |
2014 | 320,000 | 0.4 |
2015 | 543,000 | 0.6 |
2016 | 791,000 | 0.9 |
2017 | 1,262,000 | 1.3 |
2018 | 2,082,000 | 2.2 |
2019 | 2,276,000 | 2.5 |
2020 | 3,244,000 | 4.2 |
2021 | 6,768,000 | 8.3 |
2022 | 10,522,000 | 13.0 |
*Includes plug-in hybrids. Source: EV Volumes
We can see that EV sales really picked up steam around 2019. This is likely due to various government subsidies and a growing list of models to choose from.
EV ranges, once a major limiting factor, are also becoming less of a concern as battery technology improves and more charging stations become available.
Will Combustion Vehicle Sales Stage a Comeback?
It seems unlikely that combustion vehicles will be able to reclaim much of their lost market share.
China, the world’s largest car market, is leading the world in terms of EV adoption. As of 2022, one in four new cars sold in the country is electric. The U.S. and EU are transitioning slower, but should catch up thanks to government subsidies and a planned phase-out of fossil fuel vehicles.
In the EU, the sale of new internal combustion vehicles will be banned by 2035. However, an exemption was recently made on behalf of Germany to allow the sale of cars that run on synthetic fuels.
In the U.S., the 13 states that adhere to California’s Zero Emissions Vehicle (ZEV) Program are aiming for 100% of cars sold in 2035 to be ZEVs. These states include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.
Misc
Ranked: America’s Best Universities
Evaluated on 19 different metrics, here’s the list of America’s best universities, led by 14 private schools.

Ranked: America’s Best Universities
The latest ranking of America’s best universities is here, perfectly timed for the approaching admissions season.
“Best” is of course subjective, and U.S. News and World Report has compiled 19 metrics on which they evaluated more than 400 national universities. Some of them include:
- Graduation rates & performance: A four-year rolling average of the proportion of each entering class earning a bachelor’s degree in six years or less. Performance is measured against predictions made by the publishers, and when beaten, the university gains a higher scoring.
- Peer assessment: A two-year weighted average of ratings from top academics—presidents, provosts and deans of admissions—on academic quality of peer institutions with which they are familiar.
- Financial resources: The average per student spend on instruction, research, student services and related educational expenditures in the 2021 fiscal year.
- Debt: A school’s average accumulated federal loan debt among borrowers only.
- Pell graduation rates & performance: the same calculation as stated above, but focused only on Pell Grant students, adjusted to give more credit to schools with larger Pell student proportions.
The website’s methodology section details how they sourced their data, the weights assigned to each metric, and their changes over the years.
From the hundreds assessed come the nearly 50 best universities that offer a variety of undergraduate majors, post-graduate programs, emphasize research, or award professional practice doctorates.
Which are the Best Universities in America?
At the top of the list, Princeton University is the best university in the country, known for its physics, economics, and international relations departments. Notably, it’s a rare Ivy league university that does not have a law, medical, or business school.
Here’s the full ranking of America’s best universities, along with annual tuition requirements.
Rank | School Name | State | Tuition |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Princeton University | New Jersey | $59,710 |
2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | Massachusetts | $60,156 |
3 | Harvard University | Massachusetts | $59,076 |
3 | Stanford University | California | $62,484 |
5 | Yale University | Connecticut | $64,700 |
6 | University of Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania | $66,104 |
7 | California Institute of Technology | California | $63,255 |
7 | Duke University | North Carolina | $66,172 |
9 | Brown University | Rhode Island | $68,230 |
9 | Johns Hopkins University | Maryland | $63,340 |
9 | Northwestern University | Illinois | $65,997 |
12 | Columbia University | New York | $65,524 |
12 | Cornell University | New York | $66,014 |
12 | University of Chicago | Illinois | $65,619 |
15 | University of California, Berkeley | California | $48,465 (out-state) $15,891 (in-state) |
15 | University of California, LA | California | $46,326 (out-state) $13,752 (in-state) |
17 | Rice University | Texas | $58,128 |
18 | Dartmouth College | New Hampshire | $65,511 |
18 | Vanderbilt University | Tennessee | $63,946 |
20 | University of Notre Dame | Indiana | $62,693 |
21 | University of Michigan, Ann Arbor | Michigan | $57,273 (out-state) $17,786 (in-state) |
22 | Georgetown University | Washington, DC | $65,082 |
22 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | North Carolina | $39,338 (out-state) $8,998 (in-state) |
24 | Carnegie Mellon University | Pennsylvania | $63,829 |
24 | Emory University | Georgia | $60,774 |
24 | University of Virginia | Virginia | $58,950 (out-state) $22,323 (in-state) |
24 | Washington University, St. Louis | Missouri | $62,982 |
28 | University of California, Davis | California | $46,043 (out-state) $15,266 (in-state) |
28 | University of California, San Diego | California | $48,630 (out-state) $16,056 (in-state) |
28 | University of Florida | Florida | $28,658 (out-state) $6,381 (in-state) |
28 | University of Southern California | California | $68,237 |
32 | University of Texas, Austin | Texas | $41,070 (out-state) $11,698 (in-state) |
33 | Georgia Institute of Technology | Georgia | $32,876 (out-state) $11,764 (in-state) |
33 | University of California, Irvine | California | $47,759 (out-state) $15,185 (in-state) |
35 | New York University | New York | $60,438 |
35 | University of California, Santa Barbara | California | $45,658 (out-state) $14,881 (in-state) |
35 | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | Illinois | $36,068 (out-state) $17,572 (in-state) |
35 | University of Wisconsin, Madison | Wisconsin | $40,603 (out-state) $11,205 (in-state) |
39 | Boston College | Massachusetts | $67,680 |
40 | Rutgers University, New Brunswick | New Jersey | $36,001 (out-state) $17,239 (in-state) |
40 | Tufts University | Massachusetts | $67,844 |
40 | University of Washington | Washington | $41,997 (out-state) $12,643 (in-state) |
43 | Boston University | Massachusetts | $65,168 |
43 | The Ohio State University | Ohio | $36,722 (out-state) $12,485 (in-state) |
43 | Purdue University, Main Campus | Indiana | $28,794 (out-state) $9,992 (in-state) |
46 | University of Maryland, College Park | Maryland | $40,306 (out-state) $11,505 (in-state) |
47 | Lehigh University | Pennsylvania | $62,180 |
47 | Texas A&M University | Texas | $40,607 (out-state) $12,413 (in-state) |
47 | University of Georgia | Georgia | $30,220 (out-state) $11,180 (in-state) |
47 | University of Rochester | New York | $64,384 |
47 | Virginia Tech | Virginia | $36,090 (out-state) $15,478 (in-state) |
47 | Wake Forest University | North Carolina | $64,758 |
53 | Case Western Reserve University | Ohio | $62,234 |
53 | Florida State University | Florida | $21,683 (out-state) $6,517 (in-state) |
53 | Northeastern University | Massachusetts | $63,141 |
53 | University of Minnesota, Twin Cities | Minnesota | $36,402 (out-state) $16,488 (in-state) |
53 | William & Mary | Virginia | $48,841 (out-state) $25,041 (in-state) |
MIT places second, and Harvard and Stanford tie for third. Yale rounds out the top five.
Private universities, including seven Ivy League colleges, dominate the top of the rankings. Meanwhile, the highest-ranked public schools are tied at 15th, both state schools in California.
For affordability, since the higher ranks are populated by private universities, there tends to be a broad correlation of better universities being more expensive. That said, the most expensive school in the top 50 ranks is actually the University of Southern California, tied at 28th, for $68,237/year.
As it happens, also tied at 28th, the University of Florida is the most affordable public school for in-state students ($6,381/year) and Florida State University tied at 53rd, is the most affordable for out-of-staters at $21,683/year.
However these costs are tuition-only, and don’t account for other necessary expenses: accommodation, food, and textbooks.
Best University versus Best “Fit”
Finding the best university for prospective students is more than just perusing a long ranking list.
Aside from the numerous schools present within each university—which can often be the best for specific majors—factors like location, proximity to family, campus culture, the non-academic pursuits (sports, extracurriculars, internships) are also taken into consideration.
In fact, research has found that just attaining a university degree improves future earnings potential and employability.
Furthermore, individual engagement at college (irrespective of the rank of the school in question) plays a far bigger role in learning and general well-being than simply attending a highly-ranked school.
However, for low income and minority students, attending a top-ranked school does improve future earnings considerably. For women, it also often results in delaying marriage and kids, which results in more work-hours and as a result, more pay.
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