I did not imply that I expect my kids to get to any college. I am well aware of how selective they are and it is not possible to predict or guarantee who will be admitted regardless of grades or scores or anything else.
Both of my kids liked all schools we visited so far though we visited really just few because they really have no time to visit due to various programs, extracurricular activities, summer programs, etc. We expect to visit no more than 3 schools max for each of them. So both of them at this point do not have any specific preference for any specific school.
From US News report limited data available even top schools do not seem to be equal. For instance JHU BME alumni median starting salary is $76k, MIT $78k while GT is $67k. And JHU, MIT and GT ar tops three schools in BME according to US News. There is big difference between $78k and $67k starting salary, I wish I cold see if this gap grows with career or vanishes over time.
Anyways, I don;t know if US News is reliable and if there are other small colleges that maybe flying under radar in ranking and may be really good for specific major.
Regarding safety school we only have one: Rutgers which is I am pretty sure they will get in. Not sure what other safety school we should consider. We really don’t want to apply to gazillion schools just to make the number.