Any long-time reader of the EssaySnark blahg knows that we’re no fans of bschool rankings.

Sure, they give you a starting point when you’re brand-new to this process, to understand which schools are considered “good” — but they hardly tell the whole picture.

When we have a BSer come to us saying they’re interested only in Harvard, Stanford or Wharton, then we just heave a little sigh and say, “Oh well.”

It’s a very limited way to look at the world.

A ranking is someone else’s evaluation of the school. Not your own.

Harvard, Stanford and Wharton are soooooo different as to be almost laughable.

And, there are so many other really good schools out there!!

Anyone claiming that the ROI is only worthwhile with H/S/W is simply saying that they only want to buy their way into a club. That they want the prestige or rubber stamp of a particular brand associated with their name.

They are overlooking the fact that it’s a TWO YEAR COMMITMENT into an experience that will CHANGE you.

Don’t you care about what that experience will be like?

The Harvard and Stanford and Wharton experiences are similar, sure, but they are by no means the same — and they are by no means that much different from what you might get at Columbia, or Ross, or NYU, or…

You get the point.

The biggest issue with someone saying they only care about H/S/W though is when in the same breath they lament the fact that these schools select applicants on GMAT score.

They don’t, of course.

They evaluate the whole package. They look at everything you submit individually and complete a holistic review on how you present your background and your qualities and your strengths and your weaknesses through the individual elements of the app. Including GMAT score, of course.

But they do not select applicants on the basis of GMAT score alone. If they did, the top schools would have only 780-scoring students and nobody else.

Yes it’s a factor.

And yes, the rankings maybe can play a part, in the initial phase of your process of investigating the schools.

But please, if you’re serious about changing your life and you REALLY want to impact the world, then don’t rely on rankings alone to evaluate quality of an institution.

Go find out for yourself what the place is about.

Do your own research.

Construct your own viewpoints. Don’t accept someone else’s.

Rankings are not like fake news; they all are constructed through different methodologies put in place by the different publications. They all profess to use data behind them.

But if you’re serious about learning what the world is really like and not being a victim of propaganda and undue influence from the powers that are trying to control your mind (said in half-jest) then please find out what the world is like FOR YOURSELF.

The schools don’t make admits only on GMAT.

You should not use ranking to figure out where to apply.