My admissions story is a circuitous one. I landed at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania after applying to 8 or so other schools that the rankings would tell you are “better” and I got into 7 of them including some nice merit scholarship chances. The key in picking a college, though, is fit. When I visited Gettysburg, I don’t remember being that impressed, but last spring when a full ride at another school fell through, I emailed a professor and the dean of students on a whim, and suddenly they connected me to a bunch of other people and I found a home. Incidentally, Gettysburg was the only school to which I applied that had a marching band, so that was a plus. The point, college searching students, is that the key is finding a good fit, not where US News and World Report tells you is best.
In case you’re interested in the nitty gritty details, my 2270 SAT score (780 / 760 / 730), 4.0 first in class, Eagle Scout + all kinds of other leadership position resume as well as essays that were truly PERSONAL and in some cases funny or informal got me into Penn, William and Mary (one of 20 finalists for their 1693 scholar program out of like 7000 apps), Washington and Lee (Johnson Scholar finalist), Bucknell (presidential fellowship offer), Gordon (top merit scholarship offer), and Fordham (top merit scholarship offer). I got rejected from Duke.
Visiting the campuses of W&M and W&L to interview for their full ride scholarships told me everything I needed to know about their campuses and convinced me they wouldn’t be good fits; I think it was a blessing I didn’t get the scholarships.
So far, I am thrilled with my choice of Gettysburg. Do what’s right for you; don’t worry about the pundits.