The Princeton Review has just published the 2008 list of Top 366 schools. With the recent criticism of college ranking systems, the Princeton review sets itself apart by enlisting student participation to rank colleges according to the student’s personal experiences.

As pointed out by TheBizofKnowledge, these college ranking systems benefit more the college than they assist potential students in selecting the best college for them. The “institutions of higher learning” use the rankings to leverage prestige and bragging rights. Even though the Princeton Review enlists student input to their ranking system, it still does not stack up as a consumer review, which would be more useful to students.

When I was deciding on a college, I did not look up the best colleges in the nation. Instead, I decided on a career goal, the cost ceiling (budget) that I would be willing to expend to attend college, and the environment that would best suit my study habits and preferences. But, all these considerations ended up on the back burner when I was offered a full scholarship to California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). In the end, cost became the number one concern—the scholarship would greatly reduce my out-of-pocket expenses because tuition, books, parking, and other incidentals would be covered by the scholarship.

Students deciding on a college are often influenced by a number of variants—family history, religion, and high school counselors, just to name a few. For example, while researching an article reflecting the ranking of CSULB as one of the West Coast’s top 25 colleges, I interviewed CSULB’s beloved former president, Robert Maxson, who pointed out that students and professors are the back bone of any college. His point: any ranking system would reflect the level of excellence to which students and professors aspire.

What if your school ended up on the list of Top Party Schools? Is that a reputation a so-called respected institution would be proud of? I doubt it. CSULB has probably avoided such a reputation by having a “Dry Campus” policy. However, I have heard of students choosing a school based on its reputation for awesome parties. Students most likely choose a “party school” because that is the environment in which they want to study—many young adults consider the college years a time of experimentation and exploration. In contrast, my main college goal was to obtain a Bachelors degree—which is exactly what I did.

In the end, the college that one attends is, in large part, determined by the letters of acceptance or rejection that are received from schools to which a student has applied. So, in all honesty, how much influence does the Princeton Review have on the decisions of potential college students? Probably very little.