<p>based on whatever…(prestige, academics, social life…)
My opinion:</p>
<li>Williams</li>
<li>Amherst</li>
<li>Bowdoin</li>
<li>Bates</li>
<li>Midd.</li>
<li>Hamilton</li>
<li>Colby</li>
<li>Connecticut</li>
<li>Trinity</li>
</ol>
<p>are there others?</p>
<p>you forgot tufts and wesleyan.</p>
<p>my rankings (in terms of overall academics, selectivity, and people that i know who got accepted vs rejected to these schools. NOT prestige to the average person):</p>
<p>williams
amherst
bowdoin
middlebury
wesleyan
tufts
hamilton
conn coll
trinity
bates
colby</p>
<p>amherst/williams
wesleyan/bowdoin/middlebury
tufts
hamilton
colby/bates
trinity/conn college</p>
<p>Wesleyan
Bowdoin
Amherst, Williams
Bates
Tufts
Hamilton, Middlebury
Colby, Connecticut, Trinity</p>
<p>Wesleyan
(big dip)
Williams
Trinity
Amherst
Tufts
Bowdoin
Bates
Colby
Middlebury</p>
<p>you got a grudge against Midd??</p>
<p>Think again... midd is better than Wes</p>
<p>i think he was joking...</p>
<br>
<p>Think again... midd is better than Wes<</p>
<br>
<p>Really? In what way?</p>
<p>also johnwesley you forgot conn and hamilton!</p>
<p>Wesleyan
Conn
Williams
Trinity
Hamilton
Amherst
Tufts
Bowdoin
Bates
Colby
Middlebury</p>
<p>i really think he's joking...</p>
<p>And the average person on the street would ask you, "What's so funny?"</p>
<p>point taken. i agree that this is a ridiculous exercise (ranking schools with little difference between them as though they were miles apart). But there are some qualitative differences, however small, that differentiate some colleges from others. That being said--in the end, one may be much happier at Connecticut College than they would be at Williams...</p>
<p>Williams
Amherst
Middlebury
Bowdoin
Wesleyan
Tufts
Colby
Bates
Trinity</p>
<p>Amherst
Williams
Wesleyan
Bowdoin
Middlebury
Tufts
Colby
Bates
Hamilton
Trinity
Conn College</p>
<p>Now, there's one I would agree with -- except maybe move Hamilton above Colby/Bates.</p>
<p>I've noticed on a couple of other posts that we tend to view schools very similarly. I actually was debating on your very point with Hamilton and was going to put it between Colby and Bates, but it just seemed to me that those two should be lumped together.</p>
<p>If you must "rate the NESCACs", then the most meaningful approach is to use a few general "tiers", rather than trying to pigeonhole every school into a specific rank. The differences between tiers are more significant than the differences within tiers.</p>
<p>Schools within a given tier are most likely to accept and reject the same students. Cross-admits are more likely to favor higher-tier schools over lower-tier schools. </p>
<p>Suggested tiers (ranked alphabetically within tiers):</p>
<p>(1) Amherst, Williams
(2) Bowdoin, Middlebury, Wesleyan
(3) Bates, Colby, Hamilton
(4) Conn College, Trinity</p>
<p>The 11th NESCAC, Tufts, is kind of an oddball. It isn't a LAC, probably doesn't share a lot of applicants with the other NESCACs, and would be more meaningfully ranked with different schools.</p>
<p>Agreed. And agree with your tiers (nicely listed alphabetically). (If forced to go 1 through 11, then I'm with Gellino, except maybe for the Hamilton placement.)</p>
<p>Amherst
Williams
Bowdoin
Wesleyan
Middlebury
Tufts
Hamilton
Bates
Colby
Trinity
Conn College</p>