<p>ill explain to you why the rankings are very important , even though i agree they might be somewhat screwed up:
when a company looks at your resume and the guy reading it doesnt really know too much about the school u went to , the first and probably only thing he ll look at will be the rankings to sort of see how good ur education was etc...</p>
<p>All I was saying is that even though Wash U may be ranked in the top 15 now, an employer who is middle aged who may not even pay attention to rankings, may view Wash U the same way it was 15 years ago, which was only a good university, not what it claims to be today acccording to US News rankings.</p>
<p>Just because the average high schooler doesn't know about Wash U doesn't mean the average employer doesn't either. Whenever I have spoken to family friends that work for high profile companies, and told them that I am going to Wash U. - they have been duly impressed. It is building up its name and is not invisible anymore. </p>
<p>Also - if your speaking strictly in terms of rankings- you can't decipher between Northwestern and Wash U. - while I can't remember exactly what number, they share the same ranking.</p>
<p>Who cares which school is better. Some kids pick Northwestern over Wash U , and the again, some kids pick Wash U over Nothwestern. They are both fine schools!</p>
<p>I'd be willing to bet that within a couple of years a lot more recruiters will come to Wash U. Recruiters and employers follow the evolution of schools as well as academics in graduate schools. There are more and more applicants from outside the midwest and internationals as well.</p>
<p>yeah...i also don't see how it matters that northwestern has had a "good name" for 40 more years than wash u since they are both respected NOW...</p>