Prestige is informal and unmeasurable. Columbia's prestige will remain high even if the quality of its education declines. But people expect the top-ranked scho

Prestige is informal and unmeasurable. Columbia's prestige will remain high even if the quality of its education declines. But people expect the top-ranked schools to be roughly the same as the top-prestige schools, which is one of the reasons for these kinds of shenanigans. The rankings are probably more meaningful at the bottom of the list than the top.