<p>
[quote]
"I could theoretically be accepted to Harvard, hate it, and decide to attend Northwestern instead. I would be making the better choice for my personal situation, but not the better academic choice."
[/quote]
</p>
<p>You wouldn't be making the better academic choice. If you hate a place it's going to influence your academics, I promise. Name recognition is not universally indicative of academic quality. </p>
<p>The 2006 fields medalists teach at UCLA, Princeton, and University of Paris. Recent Nobel Prizes in Economics were awarded to faculty at Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, University of Maryland, UCSD, and NYU. Brilliance is by no means concentrated to the "top" five colleges in America.</p>