Most prospective college students have a dream school.
For some, however, getting accepted to this idolized college is just that — a dream.
America’s dream institution is Stanford University, according to the Princeton Review’s ” College Hopes & Worries Survey,” a collection of more than 10,000 responses from college applicants and parents about aspirations and concerns heading into the admissions process.
[Get tips for picking your dream school.]
Students designated more than 500 different schools as their dream schools with Stanford — tied for No. 5 on U.S. News’ Best National Universities ranking — getting the most responses. Harvard University placed second among students, with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University and University of California–Los Angeles rounding out the top 5, according to the survey.
Parents, however, had a slightly different top 5, agreeing with their children on the No. 1 school but choosing Princeton University, Harvard, MIT and Duke University for the rest of the top spots.
For both groups, the long-term cost of college — not the prospect of getting in — proved to be the biggest concern. Thirty-eight percent of respondents cited debt as their biggest worry.
[Find ways to make college affordable.]
These costs come as no surprise, either. Eighty-five percent of respondents estimate their total college cost will be more than $50,000.
As it relates to the admissions process, 76 percent of respondents rated their stress levels as “high” or “very high,” with students reporting more stress than parents. Of those surveyed, 37 percent said the test-taking process is the most stressful part of the college admission process while 21 percent said waiting to find out if they got in was the most stressful.
Overall, though, 99 percent of respondents say college will be worth the investment and 42 percent say the biggest benefit is getting “potentially a better job and income.”
How Students Rank Their Dream Colleges
| School (state) | Dream school rank | U.S. News rank and category |
| Stanford University (CA) | 1 | 5 (tie), National Universities |
| Harvard University (MA) | 2 | 2, National Universities |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 3 | 7, National Universities |
| New York University | 4 | 36, National Universities |
| University of California–Los Angeles | 5 | 24 (tie), National Universities |
| Columbia University (NY) | 6 | 5 (tie), National Universities |
| Princeton University (NJ) | 7 | 1, National Universities |
| University of California–Berkeley | 8 | 20 (tie), National Universities |
| University of Pennsylvania | 9 | 8 (tie), National Universities |
| Yale University (CT) | 10 | 3 (tie), National Universities |
Searching for a college? Get our complete rankings of Best Colleges.
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This Is America’s Dream College originally appeared on usnews.com
