“Freshman retention rates have little correlation to rural vs suburban vs urban setting.”
You’re right but they do have a lot to do with finding the right fit. An outdoorsy person who loves to spend every free moment hiking and skiing would be happier, all else being equal, at a location that offers what Middlebury or Dartmouth does than a school like Georgetown or Columbia and their locations, for example. Students that include location in part of their fit criteria are more likely to be happy where they are. Granted, there are some students that don’t care about location but that doesn’t apply to all.
I would argue that many of these schools - great places to learn - would be much more competitive to get into if they were located elsewhere. I’d say the same for many of the midwestern schools, too.