Graduate school rankings

[gurumaster8899]

How important are they when making your decision? does it really matter?

my point is that i think some of the factors that go into the ranking system are rather pointless....so will it really affect you if you go to a school with a low ranking? for example Tufts is a great school but its engineering ranking is abysmal the same for many other schools....

i would like to think that it won't because you're research is what will matter in the end....but i am not sure....i think some of the experienced people here can help me better...

thank you

[belowthree]

Your research and your advisor is what matters in the end.

Good advisors tend to go to highly ranked schools. This isn't always true, but tends to be true, which is part of why a ranking can matter. Also higher ranked schools tend to be more competitive, which means you spend your time with (presumably) smarter peers. Oddly enough, a lot of the benefits of a highly ranked school are things that happen because of the ranking.

[Serric]

From what I've heard, the post-doc is one of the most important factors for where you do it at. I've heard you can move 'down' the ladder (Top 50 means you can work in top 50, top 100, top 200, etc), but it's very difficult, if not impossible, to move up the ladder.

[Minnesotan]

Almost all that matters in the humanities is what, and how much, you publish. You can get your PhD at SW Podunk Baptist State U. and work at Oxford, if you publish plenty of good work.