When my son was applying to colleges, including 3 LACs, the criteria for selection were:
Net Price Calculator
General Reputation/Ranking of UG Education Quality
CDS to be sure that my son’s scores are above at least 50%
Quality programs relating to my son’s major and EC’s (including concert halls and sports facilities, etc.)
Endowment per Student
Teacher to Student Ratio
Pedagogical Dedication to UG (e.g., Oxford-Style Tutorial, Preceptorial Method, etc. with direct access to faculty)
Dorms (Residential Style) and Dining quality
Safe Location and Environment
Semester or Quarter System
Campus Culture and Diversity
We didn’t rank any of these. Only after the application results were in, we looked more specifically at these factors and chose a couple schools for actual visits.