Some times going only by the brand name would be a misguided attempt, for we might ignore what is good but is not widely known. This generally happens while choosing grad schools. We consult ranking of schools by different bodies, which tend to keep the rank hierarchy almost the same year after, with only subtle changes in it. The school which is at the middle or at the bottom of the list should have to strive really hard to climb up to the top, satisfying some parameters that have no or little connection to the academic experience. Some schools are punished by what others think about them, and if these peers cannot recognize the school in subject, the school does not climb up. Now what this has to do with the how the course is taught, and who teaches it. These are more important and immediately relevant to one’s college experience. Therefore a judicious strategy would be to keep your sights beyond ranking, and look into and learn about the actual student experience in schools. When you look into the ranking by different agencies, you might find one firm changing the order of what it regards as best, and the other coming up with a different order. Though claimed as objective in itself, the ranking widely changes based on what one views as important. As said, it can also be a reflection of factors unconnected to your curriculum or teaching, or anything that matters to you as a student. This is not to discount the importance of it. It has a role to play, which is to force schools to remain competitive. But to entirely base your application strategy on what is given in the ranking will perhaps be a short sighted strategy, as you might miss out on schools where you might find everything customized to your aspiration. A better guide to school choosing would be the students who presently study or have studied there. As credentials have become secondary in importance to competence and skill, where you get it would in years be less important, as long as it represents your knowledge that you have acquired. The truth is gems can also be found outside what one traditionally believes to be the source for them. This could not be more true than when selecting graduate schools.