Undergraduate BME and Mathematics Ranks for my Shortlist Schools

[ring_of_fire_1]

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@Alexandre

I never trusted the USNWR. When I was chosing universities, back in 1991, Michigan was ranked lower than 8 of the 10 universities I was admitted into and I still chose to go there because the people I relied on, such as Harvard, Columbia and Chicago Economics professors, the CEOs of Goldman Sachs (he wasn’t yet CEO, but he was very senior and he was a UIUC alum himself, so he may have had a soft spot for Michigan!) and Banque Paribas (both CEOs were close personal friends of my father’s), my own parents and relatives (among them are Wharton and Columbia MBAs, MIT PhDs etc…) etc… all seemed far better sources than the USNWR. And today, after close to 20 years of studying universities, I consider myself much better informed than anybody working at the USNWR, and I am still learning about universities. It takes decades to learn about universities. One does not simply become an expert in 2 or 4 or even 6 years. Even the USNWR admits that it does not know as much as the experts (universty presidents and deans of undergraduate admissions etc…)

What makes you think you’re more knowledgeable than people working at the USNWR whose very JOB it is to research higher education? I feel like you’re selling these esteemed individuals short. I feel like the educated individuals you talked to only informed you of the reputation of universities based on their graduate prestige, which I deem to be very different from undergraduate excellence. Most of those high-level businessmen and academicians did years of graduate school and did grad school most recently, so they are more well-versed on grad school reputations.</p>

<p>I believe that my friends and I are more informed than the Goldman Sachs CEO and some MIT PhD about the quality of undergraduate education offered across American universities. I have relevant, first-hand accounts of undergrad at every top 50 school based on friends and cousins who have RECENTLY attended.</p>

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@Alexandre

Not according to those who are well educated and have actually taken the time to research universities.

Then how come USNWR(premier US college ranking system), the QS World Ranking(premier European college ranking system), the Hangzhou Ranking(premier Chinese college ranking system) all agree that Duke is superior to all those schools?</p>