edwaiting,
All three of those programs (UCLA, Harvard and UPenn) are considered top ten programs both for higher education and overall. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandr ... educ_admin. Technically, UCLA is the top ranked for your specialty of the three. That being said, as someone who currently works in admission I would encourage anyone not to judge a school just by a ranking. You should apply to schools that have programs that best fit your needs, faculty you're interested in, etc. And applying to a broad range, including ones that are a sure thing, is also a good idea. I recognize this may be obvious advice but sometimes it's harder to remember the big picture as you're going through the process.
