<p>There are about 3500 four-year colleges in the US. When people talk about tier 1, it means the top 15-25 schools. Tier 2 is the next 50-100, and tier 3 is the next 150-250. That is still only the top 10% of all the colleges. The bulk of colleges are not that difficult to get into. Some just require a high school diploma. I haven't looked up Longwood to see where it stands.</p>