Values Over Rankings: There’s Life Beyond the Top 25 Lists

“Because it’s a good school.”

We hear this response almost daily in our offices when we ask students why they’ve chosen to apply to specific colleges. The silence that follows our next question – “What makes it good?” – speaks volumes about the crisis we face in college admissions today.

As high school counselors, we’ve watched countless students crack under the pressure of pursuing prestige. We’ve seen straight-A students break down in tears over B+ grades, believing they’ve ruined their chances at their “dream school.” We’ve witnessed teenagers stack their schedules with AP classes while sacrificing sleep, friendships, and their mental health – all in pursuit of an acceptance letter they believe defines their worth.

Research from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education reveals that only 4% of U.S. students attend colleges accepting less than 25% of applicants. Yet this tiny fraction of institutions drives an outsized portion of our students’ anxiety and shapes their entire perception of success. Too often, the media only talks about these highly rejective schools, and because of this, student mental health suffers.

This is why we decided to transform our college counseling approach. We were tired of seeing students hang their self-worth on acceptance rates, families fracture under pressure, and teenagers overlook fantastic institutions simply because they weren’t “prestigious” enough.

The irony? The Gallup-Purdue Index, a study of over 30,000 college graduates, found no correlation between college selectivity and future job satisfaction or well-being. What actually predicted success? Experiences during college – meaningful projects, supportive mentors, engaging internships. The Association of American Colleges and Universities reports that 93% of employers value skills like critical thinking and communication far above a candidate’s choice of institution.

This realization led us to develop a new approach to college counseling that starts not with rankings or acceptance rates but with values. We created a card-sorting activity that helps students and families explore what truly matters to them. Is it pioneering innovative solutions to real-world problems? Expressing ideas through creative arts and design? Taking action for social justice? Building cross-cultural understanding as a global citizen? These conversations have transformed our college meetings from anxiety-producing sessions about test scores into meaningful discussions about personal growth and authentic fit.  Each value card includes a QR code linking to a curated database of colleges that actively champion these same principles – complete with concrete examples of how these values come alive on campus.

The change in our students has been profound. Instead of leaving our offices weighted down by pressure, they leave energized, having discovered institutions they’d never considered before – places where they can genuinely envision themselves thriving. Parents report deeper conversations with their teens about values and aspirations rather than fixating on acceptance rates.

As counselors, we have the power – and we’d argue, the responsibility – to change this narrative. We can help our students understand that college is not a prize to be won but a journey to be embraced. We can show them that their worth isn’t determined by an acceptance letter but by who they are and who they’re becoming.

Our students are facing a mental health crisis, and our obsession with college prestige is feeding it. It’s time to help them see that the “best” college isn’t the most selective one – it’s the one where they can grow, contribute, and become their best selves.

The next time a student sits in your office with a list of colleges chosen solely for their prestige, we challenge you to dig deeper. Ask them about their values. Their dreams. The kind of person they want to become. Help them find institutions that align with those aspirations, regardless of ranking.

Because, at the end of the day, our students are so much more than an acceptance letter. It’s time our college counseling reflected that truth.

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*Jared Epler and Jen Vallieres are public high school counselors at Lower Merion High School who created Forget the Rankings: The Values-Driven College Search after witnessing the toll of prestige-focused college admissions on student mental health.