Big-name schools aren't always best

The popular 'best vs. rest' hierarchy does little to help high school students choose the right college.

from the March 7, 2007 edition

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EASTON, MASS. - Ivies and safeties. Reaches and matches. Triumphs and tears. As the mother of three teenagers, I hear plenty of "college quest" language from the driver's seat of my car.

Last year, I had a high school senior in the throes of a search. This year I get a respite while my junior and sophomore take in the restless talk of their senior friends, band mates, and teammates. 'Tis the season for college anxieties – and from my vantage point, as a college administrator and as a parent, it is clear that misinformation abounds.

There is plenty of sound advice these days from high school guidance counselors and college admissions personnel who tell students to seek out schools that offer the "right fit" for them. But the myth of "the best" versus "the rest" in the pecking order of college prestige appears to be alive and well among students and parents. And this hierarchy, which drives many conversations, does little to help high school students discern what's really best for them in a college.

My oldest daughter, now happily immersed in her second semester at Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, had her own taste of the name game last summer when she excitedly told New England friends where she'd decided to go. "Grinnell," she'd say. "Cornell? Wow, that's a great school," people would often reply. After the initial irritation, she just took to responding, with some amusement, "No, not Cornell – a different great school that you've just never heard of."

As a campus professional, I am aware of how important a good "fit" can be. I have seen firsthand how the highest-ranking student in a high school class will not necessarily thrive in a highly competitive environment. I have also witnessed how the student with a relatively undistinguished high school career may become an impact student at the right place.

The real question is not about how high one can climb in the rankings, but about where one can truly participate in a challenging and rewarding curriculum, as well as explore or sustain other areas of personal interest.

Before settling on Grinnell, my daughter completed her college visits convinced that she wanted to study both chemistry and music. The particular demands of these two fields helped her narrow her search to colleges with a very open curriculum: Any school with extensive "core" requirements or a music conservatory would have made her combination of disciplines impossible. Although she changed her focus to music and French before leaving for college, she still feels that the feature of an open curriculum is an enduring value for her.

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