In reading these threads, multiple editions of USNWR, talking to other parents and just reading the news which is incredibly hostile to high-priced college tuition and loan debt, I can only project that ALL of the public universities (flagships and non and throughout the states) are going to be massively advancing in the ranks of public opinion in the years ahead. More good students, choosing to go OOS public for scholarships, will boost the receiving schools’ stats and the brands.
More of the solid non-flagships (like Colorado State) who give a lot of OOS merit scholarships and are in beautiful places, similar to Boulder but half the costs, will continue to rise in rank and prestige. When people start saying, “oh, XYZ State University? Didn’t Johnny Achiever go there?” It’s just going to keep changing as more people reject the old prestige brands and go for the latest “good schools”. Not dissimilar to shopping at Target instead of Saks or Bloomingdale’s. People shop at Target because they want to, they believe it’s a good product at a great price that serves it’s purpose. Makes me imagine that going to OOS schools with tremendous merit aid may become the new normal for many motivated students who want no part of indebtedness. That’s IMHO at any rate…