In response to Erinne Losinio’s article (“BU ranks 64th in US News,” Sept. 10, pg. 4), in which the vast majority of sources that were interviewed reported placing little or no stock whatever in annual college rankings, I must offer one simple caveat.

As students, we are all inclined, if not subconsciously obliged, toward some degree of loyalty to BU. What would it say about us as students, were we to acknowledge the apparent deficiencies and faults of our school? Accordingly, given our collective position of attendees of one of the lesser-ranked schools, we perform the perfunctory task of self-defense.

Nonetheless, to do so not only ignores the reality of the situation, and however unethical said truth may be, society at large does place substantial stock in the relative superiority of institutions of higher education. And, in the perception of such society – namely, our prospective employers – there is something to be said for an institution that both consistently and incontrovertibly surpasses its peers.

Moreover, as a political science major and future presidential hopeful, I am weary of the ramifications of my having attended Boston University, as opposed to Boston College or Harvard, both of which are consistently ranked higher. Few American presidents have not been the product of Ivy-league educations; and those who have not, including Bill Clinton, have compensated satisfactorily. As much as our having had no president of minority background reflects deliberate incorporation of race into voting decisions, the aforementioned fact likely reflects a correlation between educational background and employment (or election) appeal. As Americans, I believe that we do make some correlation, whether consciously or subconsciously, between the caliber of one’s educational history and the potential for one to succeed in a particular field. The idea should not surprise you: consider, for example, the fact that colleges, including Boston University, take into account the comparative academic rigor, classification (as private, parochial, or public schools), and notoriety of a school in making admissions decisions. The probable fact that a student from The Phillips Exeter Academy (Exeter, NH) is more likely to matriculate at a prestigious university than someone of similar merit from Adlai E. Stevenson High School (Bronx, NY) is no more coincidence than the probable fact that someone from Harvard is more likely to be President of the United States than I am.

David Blanding

CAS ’06