Harvard
Yale, Princeton, Stanford, MIT
3C (Columbia, Chicago, CalTech), 2D (Dartmouth, Duke), Penn
Other T20 (Cornel, Brown, JHU, NW, WashU, Vanndy, Rice, Emory, ND etc)
T50 (Top UCs, Top Public, Top Tech Schools-------------------------------------------)
T100 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Harvard is non-disputably number 1 and should remain on the top. The second-tier schools are the best universities in the world, but each of them has a shortfall in some areas: Yale's STEM; Princeton's no Med, Law, and Buz; Stanford's short history; MIT's humanities. The third-tier schools are as good as (even better than) the T5 in many areas. However, when students face the choice between them and T5, the T5 always have a big advantage.