I think people generally mean USNWR, but we also compare the Forbes rankings. There are various rankings and they move some year to year. It might be good to look at the methodology to see how schools are being ranked and what’s most important to you. USNWR seems to focus more on academics and selectivity, Forbes more on career outcomes.
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Some also have average debt after graduation.
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Honestly, I don’t even think it’s a literal thing. I think it’s just become short hand for “very prestigious, very selective” schools.
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Feels like a moment to stop a take a breath and look back on the milestone just reached with the admit “season” mostly done. Some of us have been in this topic (or technically its predecessor, RIP) for a few years, leading up to this moment in time. Hard to believe this topic has developed into a community and seen us through early year HS students to committed incoming college students. Regardless of the ups and downs, congrats everyone on getting here.
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Yes, indeed!
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Usually USNWR, but they have a “best colleges in America” list as well as separate lists for several majors. For example, there’s a “best undergraduate computer science programs” list and it looks a lot different than the “best colleges” list.
Whatever the ranking source be, make sure you understand the methodology (a source that doesn’t clearly outline this is suspect) and treat rankings as only one of many factors in finding the right set of schools.
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From my causal observation, while the various well known ranking lists vary in specific rank, the strong majority of the same schools usually are in the top 100-ish.
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We are so far away from a decision from my daughter (it could be right at the end!), but I saw those blue Frakta bags at IKEA last week and bought a few anyway! 
They will be in short supply soon.
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I think it is so important to mark the beginning of the conclusion of this process. For most of us, this is also the beginning of the good-bye, so I’m definitely appreciating the milestone and time spent as a family with tours and conversations.
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Absolutely! The fun part!!
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Final decisions are in for S23…and we are done with the process in the household. Really happy how things turned out for both of our kids; felt we had a pretty good strategy for both our kids. Luckily, we have the financial resources where costs are not a knock-out factor, a critical element for international applicants.
Final tally of decisions:
Accepted: UNC, UVA (Echols Scholar), UCLA, UCSD, UC-Berkeley, Northwestern, Carnegie Mellon, Rice, Duke
Waitlisted: Vanderbilt
Denied: Princeton, Stanford, Harvard
S23 will have to mull things over. Going into the process he had Princeton, Duke and Rice as his top 3. We’ll see what he chooses.
Just glad he has some great options that he loves on the table…Lots of hard work and sacrifice on his part (just like many kids that really pour their heart into this). I’m glad that his senior year has been pretty normal after the first few years of high school in the COVID era.
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Wow - impressive. Best of luck to him.
Curious - any safeties or he went all in reach - well I’d call them reaches.
Decisions are all in for D23, but she likely needs to do some re-visits before deciding.
Goal was Engineering with availability of ballet/dance on campus if possible.
White female, no hooks other than the Duke legacy.
All RD except as indicated.
Had interviews for 10 schools(all that offer them except Columbia)
1570(800/770 same sitting), max course rigor incl 12 APs ( all 5s so far including Chem, BCcalc, PhysC, Phys1, EngLit, USH, stat), 4.0uw, at or near very top of class (no official rank) at competitive private high school.
Engineering research
State/ regional Academic and EC honors/awards; school awards
Performing arts(mostly pre-pro ballet with other dance forms about 20 hrs per week, including many years of professional performance experience; orchestra w leadership)
Community service
School club leadership
Accepted:
UPenn VIPER (Engineering/Arts&Sci Dual degree program)
Duke (Pratt Engineering)
Northwestern(McCormick Engineering)
WashU St Louis (McKelvey Engineering)
Wake (full COA Signature scholar)
UVA(Rodman scholar)
Davidson (Belk nominee)
Waitlist: Harvard (deferred EA), Princeton, Columbia, Brown, Hopkins, UChicago, Swarthmore
Rejections: Yale, MIT
(FWIW as asked in another thread:The above acceptances, for her HS, were a mix of likelies(3), match(2), Reach(2)).
She worked hard and put everything into it, but we definitely know luck is a big part of it as well.
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I love hearing how your son is really thinking over his acceptances and not just going back to his original top schools. Keep us posted. 
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@tsbna44 I would work with the Honors College career advising then. I know at Schreyer, there are employers who come to speak first with Schreyer kids. There are ways to get it on a resume or online resume that employers will see and career services should be able to help with that.
edited to add: you give great advice about choosing where you want to be. thank you for putting it in perspective.
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Incredible choices your daughter has - is she leaning any specific direction or still taking it all in?
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It’s definitely on the resume - and my son had no issues - he was overburdened with interviews - he couldn’t handle anymore. I suspect no one picked him to interview or not because of Honors but of course I"ll never know. He said it’s never come up in interviews. He’s an engineering major and I’m sure that alone + (even from lowly Alabama) and his internships got him a desirable outcome.
Whether resumes are seen today, I don’t know. You upload and fill out the form. Many schools today you don’t add the college - it comes from a pre-selected list. At my company, we don’t get resumes but the profiles.
I’m not saying Honors isn’t worth it - but some just see Honors and don’t look deeper. Honors programs are all different - and that’s why some kids apply to some, but not the others.
There may be employers at PSU or wherever that come look for them but my main point is to do it because you want the experience, not because you think it makes you look better. For the kid where it fits (like my daughter at her school), it’s wonderful.
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Just curious - why Davidson if the goal was engineering? That’s an impressive list.
Does Wake go to the top due to COA which is huge - or does money not matter? Or does the newness of the program provide some doubt?
Congrats - awesome list.
Congrats! Is the tuition waiver Tuition Exchange or merit?
all great points.
And while Honors CAN be a selling point, I also have a kid at Penn State who is not in Schreyer. Guess what? She’s a TA, has a great GPA, and has nice internships for this summer.
Frankly, it is about the motivation of the kid. An un-motivated kid in Honors will be less successful than a motivated kid not in Honors. Replace “honors” with private/public, or ivy/non-ivy. There is kids who come from schools that are looked down upon … and very successful, too! It is about fit and where the kid WANTS to be.
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