<p>I would qualify the “top school” issue for the humanities in one respect: you need to consider the financial package. It is hard to justify accumulating debt in a humanities graduate school program where the outcome is so uncertain and the pay, even if you do find a position on a faculty, is not so great. It is a long haul, and nowadays graduate students are far more active than in my era, presenting papers at student and other academic conferences, trying to publish articles, working on journals. The less you have to scramble to support yourself, the better.</p>