Music Concert Report ( Hayward / Russell City Blues Festival

Suritaneil Sahota Music Concert Report (Hayward/Russell City Blues Festival) I attended a blues concert in Hayward and it was one of the most culturing experiences of my life. I learned a lot about the culture and context surrounding the blues music. I found the lyrics thought provoking especially, B.B. King’s â€Å"Why I Sing the Blues† sung by Billy Dunn. Prior to me attending this concert I hardly knew anything about the blues music or historical roots. I never listened to the blues before, so I am unaware of this type of music, but I learned a lot about this style of music and enjoyed it. I also learned about the impact Hayward had on the blues and blues musicians when African Americans migrated from the deep south to the then unincorporated area of Hayward, known as Russell city. Ethnically, the majority of the attendees were African American, the second highest ethnic group attendees were Caucasian. This makes sense, since the blues and jazz were developed in the south of the U.S. and is associated with Africans. For African Americans, the blues and jazz goes a long way back in history, more specifically their history. It is associated with African American history in America, as well as African oppression and liberation. The blues is a musical style of feeling, a style about playing what comes from your heart. It came from work songs, field chants, spirituals, field hollers and revivalist hymns from the African American communities. Blues is associated with the sad times

Essay on Narrative Style and Structure of James and the...

Narrative Style and Structure of James and the Giant Peach The books that Roald Dahl has written have very interesting narrative styles. In the story James and the Giant Peach, Dahl uses vivid imagination. He uses many imaginary situations but yet at the same time encompasses enough realistic situations that the reader can still relate to it. In James and the Giant Peach, it starts out introducing a boy named James Henry Trotter who lives with his loving mother and father. The narrator of the book tells us, the readers, that James and his familys dream is to sail to New York City and climb all the way to the top of the Empire State Building. This introduction makes us think that this story is realistic, because the†¦show more content†¦These bugs carry on many different human-like characteristics, which help make Dahls imaginative story seem somewhat realistic. All of these bugs talk to James about how they hate life on the hill and a bug eats away the stem of the peach and they go rolling down the hill. Throughout th e story the peach, with all of the characters inside, is on a dangerous adventure. After going through oceans and winds, the peach lands them on the top of the Empire State Building. The bugs help capture the evil aunts and they live happily together. This story is told in the third person point of view, which helps the reader understand the whole story and not just one characters side. If the story was told by just one characters point of view, the story could be similar but one would only see the view of that character. By Dahl using third person point of view, this allows the readers to see each characters views and thoughts of what is happening in the story. Also, throughout the book Dahl has the narrator asking many questions to make the reader imagine what is going to happen next. Usually the question comes toward the end of a page so the reader has to wonder or is caught in suspense until the page is flipped. This gives the reader a chance to use their imagination and guess what happens next. I believe this sort of writing helps Dahl pull hisShow MoreRelatedSymbolic Meaning of the Land in Gone with the Wind6993 Words   |  28 PagesReviewÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…...4 2.1 Brief Introduction of Margaret Mitchell and Gone with the WindÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…4 2.2 Previous Researches of Gone with the WindÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â….4 2.3 The Views about Sociology of NovelsÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…..5 Chapter 3 Narrative Analysis of the LandÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…...7 3.1 Contextual Meaning of the LandÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…..7 3.2 Social Emotions of Novels of the LandÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…8 3.3 Social Function of Novels of the LandÂ…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…...Â…..9 3.4 Living Circumstances

The Conflicts Dead Poet Society Essay Example For Students

The Conflicts: Dead Poet Society Essay Describe at least ONE conflicts in the text(s). Explain why the conflict was important to the text(s) as a whole, supporting your points with examples of visual and/or language features. Tradition, honor, discipline, excellence is what Weldon Academy pursues. John Keating the new English teacher has a new way of teaching. Peter Weir has shown in the film that Keating makes the boys look at a new perspective of life, Carper Diem, seize the day making the boys think out of the tradition and encouraging free thinking. In this essay Im going to describe two conflicts that are essential to this hem within the film. Rip them all out boys, I dont want any of the Introduction pages left, Mr. Keating say. What the hell is going on? the Latin teacher yells as he barges in the door, not realizing that Keating was in the class room. This is the prime example of the main conflict throughout the movie. Mr. Seatings teaching style is remarkably different to the traditional teaching of Weldon. Poetry has no boundaries; there are no rights and no wrongs. By ripping out the introduction, Mr. Keating is teaching them to write poetry in their own expressive way. Hes showing a path to where they inspired to hint for themselves and not be restricted from the traditional ways of writing poetry. This conflict of Settings outrageous teaching style Is leaving him with a bad Impression as he Is not following the four pillars. The most Important lesson Keating teaches Is Carper Idle, which means Seize the Day. Standing up on the desk In the class room, far from Welters conventional system. Keating Is getting them to gain a different perspective, thinking for themselves, living life on the edge, not being stuck In conformity. This Is causing major conflict as the boys are now stepping out Instead of following the crowd. Which Is all reflecting back to Mr. Settings teaching of Carper Idle, selling the day through self-expression. This Is causing conflict with the other teachers at Walton and also with all of the boys parents as tradition In Carper Diem Isnt exactly used. In conclusion Peter Weir has shown the conflicts strong through this film Dead Poet Society with Crape Diem and not teaching traditionally to what Welters four pillars are. Tradition, honor, adolescence, excellence. It stood out very clearly that Walton Academy does not stand for free thinking, you have to follow the rules and never to step out of line. The Conflicts: Dead Poet Society By Landlocked Rip them all out boys, I dont want any of the introduction pages left, Mr. Keating say. What the hell is going on? the Latin teacher yells as he barges in the door, not conflict throughout the movie. Mr. Settings teaching style is remarkably different to This conflict of Settings outrageous teaching style is leaving him with a bad impression as he is not following the four pillars. The most important lesson Keating teaches is Carper Diem, which means Seize the Day. Standing up on the desk in the class room, far from Welters conventional yester.

Sienkiewicz V Greif free essay sample

From 1966 until 1984 she was an office worker at the defendants factory premises. The defendant manufactured steel drums and during the course of this process, asbestos dust was released into the factory atmosphere. Although Mrs Costello did not work on the factory floor, her duties took her all over the premises. In common with other inhabitants of the local area, however, she would also have been exposed to a low level of asbestos in the general atmosphere. Causation The general rule at common law is that a person suffering injury must show on the balance of probabilities that the defendants tort (most commonly negligence) caused the injury or condition. But for the defendants wrongdoing, the claimant would not have suffered the damage (this is sometimes called the but for test). There is an important exception to this rule. In the case of a divisible disease such as pneumoconiosis, the amount of dust  inhaled operates cumulatively to cause the disease and determine its severity. If exposure to the dust is partly due to the defendants negligence and partly not, the defendant will be liable to the extent that his breach of duty has materially contributed to the disease. If there is more than one defendant, liability can be apportioned. This approach, however, causes difficulties in mesothelioma claims because, unlike pneumoconiosis or asbestosis, mesothelioma is an indivisible disease. It is still uncertain whether its contraction or its severity can be  related to the amount of asbestos fibres ingested, or even which fibres triggered the disease. In Fairchild v Glenhaven [2003], the House of Lords (as it then was) recognised that, in a mesothelioma case where the claimant had been exposed to asbestos at different times while working for different employers, it would be impossible to satisfy the conventional but for test and prove which exposure was the cause of the disease. Consequently, the Law Lords created another exception to the normal causation rule. In mesothelioma cases, it would be enough for the claimant to show that a negligent exposure ad materially increased the risk of his developing the disease. In Barker v Corus [2006], the House of Lords went on to decide that, in cases where there had been successive negligent exposures, liability should be apportioned between defendants. Each employer would be liable for that proportion of the damage which represented his contribution to the risk that the employee would contract mesothelioma. Parliament, however, swiftly intervened to pass section 3 of the Compensation Act, which allows the claimant to obtain full compensation from any one of them. The section applies where (1) a person has negligently or in breach of statutory duty exposed the victim to asbestos and (2) the victim has contracted mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos, but (3) it is not possible to determine with certainty whether it was this or another exposure which caused the disease and (4) the person in question is liable in tort whether by reason of having materially increased a risk or for any other reason.    The defendant in this case said that any negligent exposure to asbestos fibres while Mrs Costello was at work would have been minimal and far less than the environmental exposure, which was not negligent. It argued that the Fairchild exception did not apply because this was a single exposure– in other words, the defendant was the sole known source of occupational exposure to asbestos dust. In any event, the exposure was not material. According to the defendant, the appropriate causation test to apply was a doubles the risk test. Only if the occupational exposure could be shown to have at least doubled the risk of Mrs Costello contracting mesothelioma could the defendant be held liable. The judge at first instance agreed and concluded that Mrs Costellos exposure to asbestos at work increased the risk by only 18%. The claimant appealed, arguing that the judge had failed to apply the law correctly. The Court of Appeal judgment The Court of Appeal found that the proper test was whether the occupational exposure had materially increased the risk of contacting the disease. In its view, Fairchild effectively created a new tort limited to cases of mesothelioma the tort of negligently materially increasing the risk of injury. Section 3 of the Compensation Act made it law that, provided all four conditions were satisfied, causation could be proved by demonstrating that the defendant wrongfully materially increased the risk of the victim contracting mesothelioma. It did not matter whether the other exposure was negligent or non-negligent. The claimant could prove causation by any available method, including showing a material (i. e. ore than minimal) increase in risk. The defendant appealed. The Supreme Court judgment The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed the appeal. The Fairchild exception was developed for mesothelioma cases because of ignorance about the biological cause of the disease. Under it, a defendant is liable if it materially increases the risk of the claimant contracting mesothelioma. The same principle applies whether it is a case of single exposure or multiple exposure. The Court of Appeal, however, had misread the Compensation Act as creating a statutory rule of causation. Section 3 merely provides that, if a defendant negligently exposed the claimant to asbestos and the claimant contracts mesothelioma, the defendant would be liable in tort whether by reason of having materially increased a risk or for any other reason. Whether and in what circumstances liability attached to the defendant was still a matter for the common law. The Supreme Court, however, considered that the doubles the risk test put forward by the defendant was unsuitable as a test for causation in mesothelioma cases. The idea is borrowed from epidemiology, which is the study of the occurrence and distribution of events such as disease over human populations. If statistical evidence indicates that the wrongdoers act has more than doubled the risk that the victim would suffer the injury, the argument goes that it is more likely than not that the wrongdoer caused the injury. The Supreme Court concluded that, as long as medical science is unable to demonstrate the exact origin of mesothelioma, data relating incidence to exposure was not a satisfactory basis for making findings of liability. What constitutes a material increase in risk? Something more than minimal. But Lord Phillips said: I doubt whether it is ever possible to define in quantitative terms what for the purposes of the application of any principle of law is de minimis. This must be a question for the judge on the facts of the particular case.    He continued: In the case of mesothelioma, a stage must be reached at which, even allowing for the possibility that exposure to asbestos can have a cumulative effect, a particular exposure is too insignificant to be taken into account, having regard to the overall exposure that has taken place. This case involved low levels of exposure. But currently there is no known lower threshold of exposure that determines whether or not a person contracts the disease. In any event, the Supreme Court was satisfied that the exposure in this case materially increased Mrs Costellos risk of developing mesothelioma. Commentary The decision could  pave the way for claims by mesothelioma victims who have been exposed to levels of asbestos that, until now, might  have been considered too low to be actionable. The Supreme Court judges resisted any attempt to limit the applicability of the Fairchild exception or the Compensation Act to multiple exposure mesothelioma cases. As Lord Phillips commented: The 2006 Act, coupled with Fairchild, has draconian consequences for an employer who has been responsible for only a small proportion of the overall exposure of a claimant to asbestos dust, or his insurers, but it would be wrong to have regard to that fact when considering the issues raised by these appeals. Parliament has willed it so. Comments made by some members of the Supreme Court, however, questioned the wisdom of creating special causation rules, even for such a disease as mesothelioma. Lord Brown doubted whether special treatment could be justified. Although [†¦] mesothelioma claims must now be considered from the defendants standpoint a lost cause, there is in my mind a lesson to be learned from losing it: the law tempers with but for test of causation at its peril. Lord Rodger looked forward to a day when medical science can identify which fibre or fibres caused the disease, at which point the problem that gave rise to the Fairchild exception will have ceased to exist.

The Emperors Club free essay sample

The bigger mistake was letting Cedric go on through his student life without the professor doing something about his cheating and isbehaviours. Even if the professor caught Cedric cheating and doing pranks and disrespectful acts to his teachers, co-students and to his school, he still tolerated the bad acts of the child and didnt do anything to correct and sanction Cedric even if he knew that it must be corrected and reprimanded. Giving Cedric something he doesnt deserve in the first place and not reprimanding him is a huge crime already. These served as the primary causes for the child to carry on through his wicked character and attitude. Cedric grew up knowing that he could get anything easily even if he didnt deserve it and that he could get away with anything without him being lectured/ reprimanded to. Everything rooted from his school days. If I were the professor, I never would have given a child something that he/she doesnt deserve. We will write a custom essay sample on The Emperors Club or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Giving something they dont deserve results to them believing that they could get anything they want without them exerting an honest and diligent work. Also, supposing that I am in the position of catching a child cheating and doing pranks, I ould reprimand that child right away and give him/ her due sanction. Letting the child believe that he/ she can get away with anything (even bad behaviour) can lead to disastrous outcomes that they could carry on until they grow older. Being an educator is tough. We are torn between our love for our students (children) and our attempt to be parents and strict mentors to them. Letting a child fall and get hurt out of their own misdemeanours are some of the best ways and traits of being a great teacher. Let the students suffer the consequences of their bad doings and let them see that we, teachers, reprimand them if we see them do misbehaviours. If students see that teachers correct, reprimand and give sanctions right away especially when the students know that the teachers know what they did, teachers earn the students respect. Their moral values shall be honed to be strong all throughout their growing up years too because they know that bad behaviour shall not be tolerated and good attitude and character matters most. The Emperors Club By inaorate The Emperors Club free essay sample The Emperor’s Club is a film that addresses many moral and social aspects that are central to contemporary society’s moral controversy. Can morals be properly instilled in a young person outside of religion? Can our future decisions be predicted based on our current character? Can our current character even be changed or molded? Can morals be learned through studying the classics? The Emperors Club’s main characters are Mr. Hundert a teacher of classics at a prestigious preparatory school, and an unruly or misunderstood student, Sedgwick Bell. Their characters seem to perpetually butt heads, or at least be contrasting moral characters. How do I understand the ethical choices of the central characters? The main ethical dilemma in this film, I believe, is how Mr. Hundert decides to treat Sedgwick. Mr. Hundert associates himself with Sedgwick, after meeting Senator Bell; Hundert realizes that they both had very demanding and emotionally distant fathers. We will write a custom essay sample on The Emperors Club or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Mr. Hundert is driven to take this unruly student under his wing. Even though the senator is Sedgwick’s paternal father Mr. Hundert endeavors to become his spiritual father. The movie plot begins with Mr. Hundert in his classroom, leading his personal little army of students wearing togas. Sedgwick Bell enrolls and wastes no time in becoming a thorn in Hr. Hundert’s back. With the two of them battling it out for the respect and control of the classroom. Things coming to point when Sedgwick flips off Mr. Hundert and Hr. Hundert laying down a severe rebuke, saying â€Å"stupid is forever†. Mr. Hundert travels to meet with Senator Bell concerning the poor behavior of his son. Once seated comfortably, Senator Bell confronts Mr. Hundert about the â€Å"good† of what he was teaching his son Sedgwick. Mr. Hundert is obviously taken aback by this question. Evident by him replying, that the senator, of all people should understand the importance of what can be learned from the classics. He goes off and lists civic virtue, philosophy, government, character as values that the ancients had embodied and set examples of. Mr. Hundert continues, saying that as a teacher it is his duty to mold Sedgwick. Here the Senator abruptly cuts him off and condescendingly informs him that he shall not mold his son, but to leave it for himself to do. That Mr. Hundert should only concern himself with instructing his son in such things as his times tables. Obviously not what Mr. Hundert expected to happen there in the Senator’s office. So basically after being chopped off at the knees in what he regards being a teacher is all about, and after seeing that Sedgwick was wanting of a father figure. The Senator’s phone call to his son and its obvious negative impact providing evidence of this. Mr. Hundert gives one more try, and challenges Sedgwick, gives him his old textbook, and told Sedgwick that he believed in him. With these actions he disregards the senator’s warning and attempts to mold him and become a spiritual father to Sedgwick. Sedgwick turns his act around and starts applying himself to his studies. And eventually makes his way near the top of the class, almost qualifying him for a spot in the Julius Caesar contest. So seduced by Sedgwick’s renewed effort, Mr. Hundert decides to bump him up into the last spot kicking some other poor kid out. Hoping that the ends justify the means, Mr. Hundert, a man who believes in the rules, broke them. But there are two moral climaxes in The Emperor’s Club. Both remarkably similar to each other, but taking place some 20 odd years apart. During the Julius Caesar contest it become apparent that Sedgwick is cheating, but because of the senator’s presence, it is decided to be overlooked. Allowing Sedgwick into the contest and failing to punish the cheating, Mr. Hundert lost the moral high ground so to speak. Failed to live up to the very values and morals he taught. After the cheating incident, Mr. Hundert realizes that he can no longer â€Å"save† him, and basically just gives in to him. Sedgwick falls back to his old habits of goofing off and creating mischief in the classroom. Later when Sedgwick graduates, Mr. Hundert confesses that he felt a sense of failure, being unable to change Sedgwick’s ways, and I believe, misplacing his trust and in Sedgwick. The second climax occurs in much the same way. Twenty years later, the kids are all grown up and are society’s elite. Basically there is to be a rematch to the Julius Caesar contest, and Mr. Hundert is called up from retirement to moderate the contest. Mr. Hundert returns hoping that time has proven him wrong. That Mr. Bell has turned into a fine example of a gentleman and father. And by all appearances this is true. The contest begins, but yet again, Sedgwick cheats. Prompting another sharp rebuke, the decisions that you take define your character and influence your children. In a final insult Sedgwick Bell takes Mr. Hundert’s rhetoric, and moral values and squanders it for his own political ambitions. What do I think is the films ultimate message? I think the film gives us that answer at the very beginning when Mr. Hundert’s dialogue states: â€Å"A man’s character is his fate†, and at the end where he says something to the effect that the boys had taught him something of inestimable value. That what he did for them mattered and that one misstep with Sedgwick does not blot out a life of goodness. I don’t think it is saying that we all travel a predetermined path, but rather that our small decisions are the foundation

Topics for a Position Essay

Topics for a Position EssayWhen it comes to writing your job interview questions, the topics you should ask for will change from company to company. Your essays will have to be different than that of an applicant who is applying for a position at a large corporation. For example, a business owner might ask for a few of the topics you should ask for in their job interview. The following are topics you should ask for when writing your resume or employment application.Your job interview will cover a wide range of topics depending on the size of the company. Some companies only ask for two topics. Others ask for as many as six or seven. You might want to include a topic about a problem they are currently having and a way to correct the problem or one they can work on in the future.Your job interview may cover aspects of the company or this company specifically. For example, if the job is in accounting, you will be asked about taxes. If the employer is involved in a merger, you may want t o ask about the merger and how the new management plans to handle it.One of the more challenging jobs for you when preparing your job interview essay will be an objective. The objective will show how your skills and capabilities match the qualifications they are looking for. This will be a highly competitive segment of the interview, so you must be sure to answer with the best information you can. Your objective should be in accordance with your resume and employment application but include specifics that will help show how you can be a good fit for the company.One thing you should not do when preparing for your job interview is to refer to anything that happened in the past that you had a part in. This includes statements from a written assignment or essays you have already written. For example, if you worked as a secretary in high school, don't say you worked as a consultant for five years ago. It is important that you not offend a company when addressing any of the past work you did.Instead, you should talk about what you have done in the present and in the future, especially your ability to turn your experiences into real life experience and apply it in a current situation. Focus on skills you can bring to the table to the company. You can use your job interview to make your resume and employment application to stand out and be well read by the hiring managers.In addition to being prepared for your job interview, you should also complete your employee background check. A background check can go far in qualifying you for a position that is relevant to your career. Doing a background check is not something you should do once; rather, it should be performed at least twice.Some companies will even provide background checks on candidates who are at the top of their potentials, which means you should make sure you include this information in your job interview. The essay should also have a good conclusion. These are all the topics you should ask for when prepari ng your resume or employment application.

Should You Really Trust College Ranking Lists

Should You Really Trust College Ranking Lists SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips Since the U.S. News World Report college rankings list debuted in 1983, college-bound students and their parents have become quite enamored with college ranking lists. While the U.S. News list may be the most well-known, there are a plethora of college ranking lists out there. All use slightly different criteria to rank colleges and all claim to be the best and most reliable. However, should you trust any of these lists? Should you use them when deciding which college to attend? Do they provide any valuable information? In this article, I'll answer those questions. I'll let you know how much you can trust college ranking lists. Furthermore, I'll explain the pros and cons of these lists and how to use them to your benefit. How Are College Rankings Determined? Most ranking lists use a combination of objective statistics and subjective opinions based on survey responses to compile their rankings. Objective Numbers That Influence the Rankings These are the most common statistics used by the most popular college ranking lists that help determine the rankings. Retention: Some lists use the freshman retention rate, the percentage of students who return for their sophomore years, to help to determine their rankings. The logic behind using this statistic is that if a student is happy with a college and receiving the necessary support, then she will return for her second year. Also, lists use the 6-year graduation rate, the percentage of students who graduate within 6 years. If a college is providing quality instruction and nurturing its students, then the vast majority should be able to graduate within 6 years. Class Size: US News measures the proportion of classes with less than 20 students and the proportion with 50 or more. The idea here is that very small and large classes are indicative of having more resources. Also, students in smaller classes receive more attention and personalized instruction. Faculty Salary: The reasoning for using this metric is that schools that pay their faculty most generously are able to attract the best professors. Student-Faculty Ratio: If there is a low student-faculty ratio, then students can possibly get more attention and there will be more opportunities for students to interact with professors. SAT/ACT Scores: Schools with higher average standardized test scores are seen as being more selective and having more academically capable students. Percentage of Students That Graduated in the Top 10% and 25% of Their High School Classes: Colleges whose students all graduated near the top of their high school classes are judged positively for having the highest caliber of student. Acceptance Rate: The logic behind using this number is that if a college admits only a very small percentage of its applicants, then those that it does admit are likely to be the best and brightest. Average Spending Per Student: US News calculates spending per student by using the average spending per student on instruction, research, student services, and related educational expenditures in the most recent two fiscal years. Spending on sports, dorms, and hospitals doesn't count. If a college is spending more per student on education, then you may be able to assume that its students have more educational resources and quality instruction. Alumni Giving Rate:The alumni giving rate is the percentage of graduates who gave to the school, usually within the last year or two. According to various studies, the alumni giving rate is a measure of student satisfaction. However, I enjoyed my experience at Stanford, but I don't donate to my alma mater. Maybe somebody from Stanford will read this and I'll stop getting incessant letters and phone calls asking me for my money. Financial Aid: Some lists measure the average amount of financial aid awarded and others measure the percentage of financial need that is met. Better colleges should have the resources to enable all qualified students to attend regardless of financial need. US News also measures how satisfied students are with their financial aid, but that is a much more subjective rating. Salary of Alumni: The logic behind using average alumni salary in college rankings is that colleges that provide an excellent education and can offer good professional connections will have alumni with high salaries. Opinions That Influence The Rankings Academics US News World Report relies heavily on "undergraduate academic reputation" in its rankings. The academic reputation of a school is determined by how top academics and administrators at other colleges assess its academics. US News also surveys counselors from high schools to rate the academic programs of colleges to help determine "academic reputation." Princeton Review conducts a survey on how hard students work and how much they get back for their efforts to assess academics. Quality of Life Most college ranking lists assess the quality of life at a college through student surveys. Princeton Review grades quality of life through student assessments of "their overall happiness; the beauty, safety, and location of the campus; the comfort of dorms; the quality of food; the ease of getting around campus and dealing with administrators; the friendliness of fellow students; the interaction of different student types; and the quality of the school's relationship with the local community.† For the first time this year in its rankings, Forbes used a student satisfaction survey on Facebook where students were asked how satisfied they were with their school from 1-5. Obviously, the logic behind using quality of life measurements in rankings is that students should be happy if they're attending a good school. Pros of College Ranking Lists Discover New Colleges College ranking lists can introduce you to colleges that may be a good fit for you. I think this is probably the most valuable thing about these lists. Many students are not as familiar with smaller, well-ranked schools. Seeing these schools on ranking lists can provoke a student to research them, apply to them, and maybe even attend a school he would not have previously considered. For example, schools like Harvey Mudd and Williams are excellent schools that may not be as prestigious or have the same name recognition as Harvard or Yale, but they consistently rank very highly in college ranking lists. Provide Extensive Data for You to Compare Schools In one ranking list, you can see the average class size, high school GPA, or SAT/ACT score for many different colleges. These lists can offer you a resource for numerical comparisons. If you're considering a few different colleges, you can refer to a rankings list to compare the available statistics for each school and that may help you narrow down your list of colleges to apply to. Give You an Idea of What Others Think While the rankings can be disputed and these lists are subjective, college ranking lists do provide some insight into the reputations of different colleges. Graduate schools and employers often consider the reputations of different schools when they make decisions. Going to a #12 vs. a #20 school will probably have little impact on those decisions; however, going to a #12 vs. a #200 school could. Learn What You Need to Do to Be a Qualified Applicant Many of the ranking lists give you the average high school GPA, standardized test scores, and the percentage of students who graduate in the top 10% and 25% of their high school classes. From these numbers, you can determine what you need to do to make yourself competitive for admission to a specific school. If you want to have a decent shot at getting into a certain college, your numbers should compare favorably to those of the average student there. Cons of College Ranking Lists Some of the criteria used to evaluate colleges are highly subjective. For US News World Report, top academics and high school counselors answer survey questions about other schools' academic programs. Are they well-informed enough to have educated opinions on the academic programs of colleges they may have never worked at nor attended? Are they just relying on hearsay and the reputations of these schools to answer these questions? Similarly, some quality of life assessments may not account for natural variances in opinions. If the campus of a school in a rural environment is ranked as beautiful, that means little for the student who prefers urban environments and would find the rural campus unappealing. Some of the criteria used to rank schools may have no real impact on your educational experience. The rate of alumni giving and selectivity of a school will probably not impact the quality of instruction you'll receive at a particular college. Students can get too focused on the rankings instead of figuring out which school is the best fit for them. There's probably not much difference in the quality of education at a #5 school vs. a #10 school. The #10 school may be a much better fit for a student who could excel academically at both. Finally, colleges are very motivated by the rankings. They'll convince students who have little chance of getting accepted to apply to increase their selectivity rating. They'll spend countless hours and tremendous resources hitting up alumni for money to up their alumni giving percentages. Perhaps these schools could improve their academic programs or support services if they allocated their resources without regard to college rankings. College ranking lists can be both good and bad. What Do Some College Experts Think? Generally, in my research, the "experts" on record seem to have echoed some of my sentiments about college rankings. Jeffrey Brenzel, Dean of Admissions at Yale from 2005-2013, believes that college ranking lists are of limited value to students: The formulas used to rank schools are based on factors that in themselves are often irrelevant to individual students. Their composite scores reflect alumni giving rates, student-to-teacher ratios, median SAT scores, persistence to graduation, admissions selectivity and other data that provide little information about specific program strengths, honors programs or the general way in which the school lifts and supports student aspirations. The simplicity and clarity that ranking systems seem to offer are not only misleading, but can also be harmful. Rankings tend to ignore the very criteria that may be most important to an applicant, such as specific academic offerings, intellectual and social climate, ease of access to faculty, international opportunities and placement rates for careers or for graduate and professional school. Colin Diver, former Dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and former President of Reed College, also wrote of his dislike for ranking lists. He wrote positively of Reed's decision to not submit information to US News World Report for its rankings list: For ten years Reed has declined to fill out the annual peer evaluations and statistical surveys thatU.S. Newsuses to compile its rankings. It has three primary reasons for doing so. First, one-size-fits-all ranking schemes undermine the institutional diversity that characterizes American higher education. The urge to improve one's ranking creates an irresistible pressure toward homogeneity, and schools that, like Reed, strive to be different are almost inevitably penalized. Second, the rankings reinforce a view of education as strictly instrumental to extrinsic goals such as prestige or wealth; this is antithetical to Reed's philosophy that higher education should produce intrinsic rewards such as liberation and self-realization. Third, rankings create powerful incentives to manipulate data and distort institutional behavior for the sole or primary purpose of inflating one's score.Because the rankings depend heavily on unaudited, self-reported data, there is no way to ensure either t he accuracy of the information or the reliability of the resulting rankings. However, some college admissions experts do see some value in the ranking lists. Lynda McGee is a college counselor at Downtown Magnets High School, ranked as a gold medal high school by US News interestingly enough. Like I previously mentioned, she states that college ranking lists can help introduce you to excellent colleges: Many factors go into college rankings, including alumni donations and how other institutions perceive them. Take that into account when you start to think that school #1 must be much better than school #20. What the rankings can do is introduce you to great schools you may be unfamiliar with. So check out those rankings, but remember that you will find an excellent education up and down the list. Keep in mind that while you may not find many representatives from colleges to speak positively about ranking lists, in general, hundreds of colleges routinely brag about their rankings and prominently display them on their websites and in their brochures. Colleges tend to care about these rankings, and they know they matter to students, their parents, and influence popular opinion. Rankings matter to many people. Final Word on Whether You Should Trust College Ranking Lists Don't trust the exact ranking. The #5 school isn't necessarily better than the #10 school in any given list. Use ranking lists to find colleges you may have not previously considered. Focus on the factors that are important to you in a college when looking at a ranking list. You want to go to a college that is a good fit for you. Use the objective available statistics like average high school GPA and SAT/ACT score to compare colleges and determine what you need to do to be a qualified applicant. College ranking lists do provide a rough idea of how colleges are perceived in the academic and professional worlds. What's Next? College ranking lists should only be one of many resources you use in your college search. Make sure you know how to choose a college. Also, look at the best college search websites. Finally, as you're deciding which schools to apply to, learn about reach and safety schools. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: