<p>hoedown,
Actually there can be a lot of “Top 20” schools if one narrows down their rankings to the specific elements that make up the rankings. </p>
<p>For example, a school like Wake Forest could make a lot of noise that it’s a Top 20 school for students who are interested in being on a campus with small classes. </p>
<p>Or a bigger research university like a State U could say that it is Top 20 in research funding. </p>
<p>Or another school (Tufts) could say that it is Top 20 in standardized test scores. </p>
<p>Or a school could even say it is Top 20 in terms of the combined percentage of students of color on their campus (UCSD).</p>
<p>Schools can and should get more creative about presenting themselves to prospective students and families and not be slaves to the overall USNWR rankings. They can best do this by comparing themselves on things that they do well and which are of value to their target market. Forget the broad rankings and focus on what your target student cares about and then do everything possible to deliver that element to that student.</p>