Rankings do mean something Of course they do. But they don’t mean everything. They are certainly more reliable than Aunt Jenny’s opinion. You have to look at what factors are considered in the rankings and decide if those same factors are important to you. Also look for convergence of evidence. If different ranking schemes always result in certain schools coming up on top, that should tell you something. Even so, read about what factors are included and how they are weighed. I don’t buy the notion that they are not important but they are only helpful if they include variables the student thinks are important and if they weight those variables in a way consistent with the student’s values.