<p>Well, I was in Turkey and Germany two years ago, and everyone knew what MIT was, and everyone gave the “Wow” comment when I told them I was applying. Not even accepted or waitlsited, but just the fact that I was applying was impressive. When they asked what other colleges, I mentioned both Caltech and the University of Chicago, and only one person knew what Caltech was, and none of them recognized the University of Chicago.</p>
<p>As for ranking everything, there’s nothing wrong with that. Just rank it according to your own needs, not some artifically created ones.</p>