<p>What does it mean to be a 3rd tier school? I know it refers to USNWR rankings but beyond that ...what's it all about Alphie???</p>
<p>In the USNWR Best Colleges edition, the "third tier" refers to the national universities that are ranked 131 through 187, listed alphabetically. There is a fourth tier, ranked 196 through 258, also listed alphabetically. The colleges ranked 1 through 130 are considered first and second tier (and not listed alphabetically.) USNWR did a similar tier system for the LACs.</p>
<p>Thank you. I never knew that. Anyone know what ranking a third tier LAC is (ie: 150th on, 200th on...)? My son is interested in one third tier, and I was slightly concerned by that label.</p>
<p>Look at the rankings closely and see what the more negative factors USNWR considered are, not the "third tier" label. And then research the school as if you'd never seen USNWR. There's a "fourth tier" school my daughter is interested in which offers merit aid over a certain SAT and seems to be the only one she's seen that has a major related to her very specific career goal. So if that particular program looks good and is in no danger of being eliminated, maybe that's first tier in Muffy333's rankings.</p>
<p>LOL, NEM's ranking is different for that 3rd tier school too. We have seen the school, we liked it, and they are generous with merit aid. It is very much on the list. The third tier label does bother me a little, bc I worry about grad school, and/or employment.</p>
<p>I would worry about employment too...we've researched who employs from the program at this 4th tier my daughter likes and were very satisfied.</p>
<p>Tier Smier!! If your child likes the school, and the school has the courses of study your child wants to pursue...go for it. There are very successful folks who have graduated from all kinds of college. The way this thread reads, the only "employable" graduates come from higher tier schools. That is simply not true.</p>
<p>Don't worry about this for graduate school (law school is different, I think). Med schools will look at the MCAT, GPA, independent research and summer experiences (friend's son is at Duke med and went to a 4th tier school). For PhD programs it is the same thing-top GRE, independent research (publishing something is a real tip), grades. Sometimes a less competitive school can be a real plus-the student who would be lost in the pack at a tier 1 school stands out and gets a lot of extra attention and opportunities. The less competitive schools typically use the same texts, too. It will be up to your child however to make sure he/she stays on top gradewise and not drift down performancewise because its easier.</p>
<p>Employability also has a lot to do with experience and personality. A student with a dynamic personality, solid academics and interesting activities often wins out in the job race (except, again for law firms and fortune 500).</p>
<p>Law schools look at the LSAT and GPA.</p>
<p>Thank-you Thumper. Then we have no worries here!</p>
<p>Thanks for the good advice.</p>
<p>You can get into HLS with a high GPA from just about anywhere if your LSATs are high; the LSAT tests whether you can read a dense piece of writing and know what it means quickly, which is essential for legal studies.</p>
<p>A 3rd-tier school might just not play by USNWR's rules.</p>
<p>As far as grad school placement success goes, the school should be very happy to share that info with you. One small, unknown LAC I attended placed every applicant into med school and law school for years.</p>
<p>Is there a link to the list of all these tiers????</p>
<p>Abasket -- Here you go:</p>
<p>Thanks for this information. I was confused when I saw one of my DDs faves as a tier 3 LAC when it spent the previous several years on the best regional LAC list. Someone said that that was likely due to a change in USNWR's ranking methodology. Not in the school.</p>
<p>abasket -- Just go to usnews.com, click on Education, and on best colleges.<br>
They then will let you click on National Universities, third tier national universities, etc. They also break down schools according to LAC, regional master's, etc. But as everyone says -- take with a big grain of salt.
Back in the day, I won a major national fellowship and admittance to a whole slew of Ivy grad programs as a student at a third tier commuter school.</p>
<p>D1 will be graduating from a third tier school in May. She has one friend who has not only gotten into Harvard Law School, he has gotten into all of the USNW top ten law schools, some with scholarships, which I didn't know they gave scholarships for law school. A different friend has gotten into Harvard Medical School and Johns Hopkins med school. (the premed guy has been an EMS tech for 5 years, harvests corneas from accident victims and started a campus organ donor club) </p>
<p>Yet another student, a math major, got into Princeton grad school for math.</p>
<p>mercymom, Thanks for posting. We found a school that our family likes and feels would be a good a good fit. It is ranked third tier, so this is informative.</p>