Good examples of this would be Carnegie Mellon and University of Michigan.
Some high school students initially assume that they’re low ranked and/or easy to get into because they’ve never heard of it, or because it’s a state school.
You have several threads with a similar theme. It appears to me that you’re looking for a prestigious college but you’re worried about getting in. You wonder if being an URM helps and if new federal policies that may or may not be on the horizon will result in fewer applicants and lower the competition. Are you worried your stats aren’t high enough?
You need to run your own race. You come from an upper income home, right? How much can your parents pay per year? If you need merit, check the thread that’s pinned to the top of the financial aid forum for automatic scholarships. If you tell us your home state, test scores, and UW GPA we can probably help you.
LOL, gee… @austinmshauri
You’re right, a little. EVERYONE is worried about not getting in. You should always have a backup plan.
This particular thread was off the top of my head, though.
I no longer have high income, I am from New England, I have a 2170 SAT, and I think I’ll be graduating with a 3.9. And, yes, I’m a URM. And a National Hispanic Scholar (that means scholarships in many schools!!! Yay!)
It’s okay to talk about this, but for anyone else on this thread, I would appreciate if this doesn’t get too derailed. If employers value the school, it probably has good programs, right?
Ithaca, Pomona, Fordham, Occidental come to mind.
FYI, from the Wall Street Journal:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704358904575477643369663352
Um, University of Michigan is VERY “conventionally popular.” And prestigious.
@brantly In New England?
It doesn’t seem to be considered that way to me. People don’t talk about it that way here. Everybody wants to get into Yale and some schools in Massachusetts.
@petramc Pomona has a pretty low acceptance rate. 
That says more about you than it does about Michigan’s reputation.
@TomSrOfBoston Ok, maybe I just didn’t know.
Sorry.
The same people who are surprised to learn Carnegie Mellon is a very good university might also be surprised by Brandeis, Case Western, Emory and Rochester, I assume. Those surprised by Michigan would also be surprised by Texas, UCLA, Washington, Cal and Ohio State.
Perhaps schools that are less well known (outside of cc, that is) like Rose Hullman, Harvey Mudd might be what you are thinking, though the latter in particular is very selective.
Penn State (especially if you can get Schreyer), ASU Barrett, USC Columbia Honors would be three.
The problem is that what is “not very popular” with upper middle class high school students changes from year to year, and it’s hard to know what makes a school “hot” or “cold”. So it’s hard for us to answer your question. All three universities above are plenty popular…
@jym626 Just looked up Harvey Mudd. Didn’t realize how HARD that school was before. They look like they can only admit about 200 per year.
Some possible answers to your question, though “it depends” (e.g. type of employment, target employers, your major):
- Your state flagship.
- Universities in the local area of employers you are interested in.
Baruch college and SJSU
Neither is very selective or prestigious. but high school kids don’t know the 1st rule of recruiting and real estate is the same. LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION. For most companies it’s cheaper to to recruit locally. Also its easier to make connections if you are right in their backyard.
Yes, @Princess563 Harvey Mudd is a fabulous, small LAC/engineering school. If you are interested in STEM and want to work with the big names in Silicon Valley (or anywhere in Silicon Valley and environs)- they take a lot of their employees from San Jose State.
SJSU may be more selective than people think for certain popular majors like computer science.
Silicon Valley employers also love graduates from Santa Clara University.
Since when are CMU and Michigan not conventionally popular?
As mentioned, Mudd as exceptionally well regarded by employers and yet unknown by “most people”. The same is true of Pomona (and the rest of the CMC), and many of the top LACs. (Though to be honest, your stats will most likely not get you into Mudd.)
In engineering/compsci, RPI is one most people have never heard of but which is considered prestigious by employers due to its high academic standards.