What makes a university “good”?

My not-so-secret thoughts on university rankings

Natalie Damer-Salas, Special

Dear Northview Seniors,

I want to go to a good college.

But don’t we all? It is why we spend hours on Common Application and other college portals for months. It is why we have teachers, friends, or family proofread our essays and why people spend $25 on SAT/ACT prep books and more on tutors. This path does not apply to all seniors, but it applies to the majority at Northview. Multiple times my parents have reassured me by saying, “But Natalie, you will go to a good college.” But in those moments, I just thought they don’t understand. No, see, I want to go to a good college.

What I fail to communicate to my parents are the guidelines I have created in my mind that define what a “good college” is. A good college, for many, means prestigious and ranks in the top 10-100 in the best colleges for [insert interest/qualification here] list. It is a school with a name you can say and the person you’re conversing with will recognize it and thus be impressed. I did not want to go to a school where if I mentioned it in small talk a person would say they have “never heard of the school but I’m sure it’s great.”

The fear of disappointing others and themselves is why students have most likely found themselves on U.S. News and World Report’s website during their search for colleges. Each year on Sept. 18, US NEWS releases its Best National University Rankings that cover almost 1,500 universities. This year, the number one university is Princeton University and a string of Ivies follow - how surprising. US NEWS considers many factors when ranking. Larger factors include Peer Assessment, Graduate Rate Performance, and Financial Resources per Student among others. This year, they also added a first-generation graduation rate as well as college graduates earning more than a high school graduate. Although these factors are important for colleges to have, it is valuable to understand that this is a ranking by the US NEWS and not ourselves.

At Northview, we understand rankings. We revere them. Northview is the best public school in Fulton County and the sixth-best public school in the state of Georgia. If anyone considers rankings to be important, it is Northview. But I don't believe that ranking is the issue. Elitism surrounding universities began much earlier than that. The issue is instead the mindset we have created as a society. It is hard not to be dependent on the opinions of others - particularly when college applications seem so much bigger than ourselves at many points.

People have described college as the sliver of life that is our peak. Perhaps that’s why there is so much pressure on what school we must attend. College is a big step in the lives of everyone who chooses to go. It is a time when people explore beyond the limitations of who they were in high school. It is where you find people you will keep in your life. It is when you realize maybe you aren’t as interested in your major as you thought and explore a world outside of comfort. Loving where you are is important because you are independent for the first time, and you are meant to be happy in this place; happy with the people you are surrounded by and the activities you immerse yourself in.

Previously, I believed I would be happiest at the most elite university I could be accepted into with the most competitive programs and best-known name. But this summer I confronted my own biases. During my college search, I found a very small liberal arts school on the coast of Maine. I hadn’t heard of it before this summer. But after visiting it in Maine, I realized I could perfectly see myself there. I could imagine living in New England during the fall, walking across the snow to classes, studying in the library, and watching people sing acapella - a tradition I don’t plan on joining. It was so lovely but no one knew about it. No one would know how amazing it was and why I felt so at home on its campus. But after months of writing college essays and nights where I lost my breath overthinking, I have realized that it is only my experience to go through. I do not know which school I will attend, but I do know I am applying to institutions where I can imagine myself thriving.

I hope someone reading this begins to focus on how these four years are made purely for them. Not their parents, not the classmates they may not talk to after graduation, not the teachers they will update, and definitely not the small-talkers they will meet later in life.

Sincerely,

Natalie