<p>My son is applying to both JH and UF, and I would have the same financial issues to deal with if he got into JH, and I am not that big a fan of UF, and would feel terrible if my son had to take a pass on JH for financial reasons, but to be fair, US News for 2010 ranks UF as #15 on the list of state universities, and SIX of the schools ranked above it are from California, so if you just go by states, than UF is more like #9, and is ranked right next to University of Texas and Penn State, and then, Ohio State.</p>
<p>So I would say UF is considered a pretty solid state university. </p>
<p>I have a friend in New York City who is the ultimate “school snob”, and even HE approves of UF. So yes, while it is over-rated down here in Florida, it is still pretty good.</p>
<p>I say over-rated, because over the years, I have worked for, and with, a number of UF law graduates, and they all seem to strut around very self impressed with themselves, like they went to Harvard Law School or something. </p>
<p>My concern about UF relates to placement. While, as noted, it is equally ranked with University of Texas, in the perfect world, I would prefer that my son graduate from UT rather than UF, because the economy of Texas far surpasses the economy of Florida.</p>
<p>I would say that except for perhaps UC Berkeley, UCLA, Virginia, Michigan, and UNC, most of the top 15 state flagship universities are pretty much of equal rank. For example, if students were applying to law school with an A minus average from UF, Ohio State, Maryland, Georgia, Rutgers, etc., I would think that the applicants would be considered roughly equivalent.</p>