<p>Please parents, don't let your kids look at these rankings. I got into some colleges and I should be happy, but I was curious and saw their rankings. Now I feel inferior to the colleges my friends got into. Now I feel like I am obsessed rankings and I'm pretty sure my friends are. </p>
<p>Some people who go to my school got in Princeton and Harvard, but some of my friends got into Cornell. Now those people who got into Cornell are angry because they think they are too good to "settle" for Cornell and trying to transfer colleges because Cornell is not within the Top 10. If I got into Cornell, I would be so happy. Like the majors it has and the student body, but some people can look pass its ranking. This isn't just about Ivy League schools, I am really talking about those people who are sad about getting rejected by BC and getting into BU. Most of the time it's not about how much money they received from financial aid, but how school is ranked. Just because your friend got into UCLA, but you got into UCSD, doesn't make your friend a better person. I really wish rankings didn't exist because some people on and off CC will be much happier. </p>
<p>I feel sorry for your classmates. Here I would bet that most kids have never even considered what US News has to say about their chosen college. Sure, everyone knows the “Ivys” are elite schools but most of the kids are focused on getting through college as cheaply as possible while still attending a good school…thankfully. I don’t think anyone would turn down Harvard with a good aid package, and we have several students at Harvard and the like, but they chose those schools because they got the best money too. When Harvard costs you $10,000 and the state flagship costs $20,000, it’s an easy choice for most :D.</p>
<p>Is US News & World Report even on the newsstands anymore? The ONLY way they make money is through this yearly ranking scam. I think the magazine has even ceased to exist. Having just started the college search for D1, I’m determined to ignore it.</p>
<p>These rankings take too much of a one-size fits all approach. They are so subjective and what is the best school for one person won’t be the same for someone else. There is some merit to them, but not that much. Many of my classmates, myself included, are turning down schools for ones much higher ranked.</p>
<p>Yes, in the book “Crazy U” the author talks about the USNWR rankings and its history. It’s literally the only thing that keeps that magazine alive.</p>
<p>Its sad but I remember when my S was graduating, a classmate of his said at the end of the year when all the results were in that he was going to go to the school with the highest ranking. For this kid it was all about the rank. He didn’t care about anything else. The best school he got into was Northwestern, so thats where he went!!! I think he is happy.</p>
<p>Erin’s Dad I used to be like that, until I saw how the rankings are made. As dantheman1018
said,“it is really impossible to rank a “best” because it really is so subjective.”</p>
<p>Yeah, as an example a really good friend of mine who is one of the smartest people I’ve ever met got into Cornell, Duke and Vandy but really couldn’t wait to hear from Georgetown, where he got in and will probably go. I’m turning down UCLA for Miami. I find it funny that the people who are supposed to be so “smart” will turn down, say, Penn for Harvard even though Penn may more suited for them because of a ranking on a list. The true smart people, IMO, are those able to think for themselves and make sound decisions based on that. After all, isn’t that what college is all about?</p>
<p>"Most of the time it’s not about how much money they received from financial aid, but how school is ranked. Just because your friend got into UCLA, but you got into UCSD, doesn’t make your friend a better person. I really wish rankings didn’t exist because some people on and off CC will be much happier. " - Suprafreshkid</p>
<p>Damned straight! . . . and I wish they didn’t keep score in soccer. Everybody who plays gets a health benefit. . . it doesn’t matter what the score is.</p>
<p>The analogy between a soccer game and the validity of rankings in college admissions is pretty poor. There are official agreed upon rules for soccer which define a clear winners and loser. I don’t think US News is an official arbiter of anything.</p>
<p>I can’t imagine disagreeing with someone over their college choice. I know people who have made decisions that I would not have given the same options, but everyone has a different set of circumstances and that must be respected.</p>
<p>I agree with the negative impact of these rankings. To me, going to college means going where I feel I can grow intellectually and as a person the most. If that means turning down the so-called #1 school then so be it.</p>
<p>I got into Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Cornell, Dartmouth, UPenn, Brown, Duke, UCLA, UCB, Vanderbilt, and Michigan.</p>
<p>I will be attending Michigan, which according to USNWR is the worst ranked school in my list. Well… So be it. I love Michigan, and it’s where I want to go. Yes, people may question my decision solely based on prestige, but I am an adult and I can make my own decisions.</p>
<p>College is my decision. It is not up to my peers to decide for me. Or to pressure me into going somewhere I don’t want to go.</p>
<p>Imo, I think your friends who got into Cornell and are now upset that it’s not good enough are too immature to be ready to go to any college at all. They should all take a year off and work at a minimum wage job while supporting themselves.</p>
<p>OMG… PLEASE… and ^^^^^ 100% agree emily. I really can’t believe how many kids are prestige mongrels… it just makes me so sad and I worry about our society as a whole.</p>