Just as the selective colleges take a holistic approach in their review of applicants, students should also weigh their college choices in a holistic way. Many families start with the U S News and World Report rankings. They’ve been around for years. Although the rankings have perennial critics, they remain a source for information gathering as students consider their options.

Rankings, however, should never be the end-all-be-all decision criteria for which colleges a student should include on their list. In fact there are some strong programs that may be a solid fit for a student although the ranking metric places that college lower. Reliance on rankings moves students away from the most important factor in the college selection process – – the student!

The best fit colleges and the most well-written essays that gain admission start with self-reflection. Students must be able to answer these 2 key questions:

Who am I?

Why do I want to go to college?

Starting with these questions, then selecting the colleges that best match with the response steers away from a myopic, rankings-only focus.

Case study: One of our firm’s clients had an interest in entrepreneurship. There are hundreds of colleges with entrepreneurship programs. All of her test scores were in the 90+ percentile. She had meaningful community service, along with rich summer experiences. This student is a hands-on learner. Thus, colleges that offered experiential learning were high on her list. She did apply to a range of colleges, by selectivity. One of the ranked programs had a heavy math emphasis that didn’t match as well with her strengths. Another lesser-ranked program offered numerous internships and was located in an urban center that offered the campus life vibrancy she desired. In the spring, the student had a range of college acceptances from ranked and unranked. All were a best fit. The decision came down to the re-visit during Admit weekend – not the ranking!