I think professors and the actual scholars there don't really care. However, administration cares because ranking is tied to both how many undergraduates studen

I think professors and the actual scholars there don't really care. However, administration cares because ranking is tied to both how many undergraduates students apply and how much they can charge these students. If college rankings didn't matter financially then I hazard that Columbia would've had questionable numbers to begin with. That said I agree that being an Ivy in NYC certainly was a major contributor to its more recent rise in the rankings and applications.