Ehrenberg, whose book Adam Smith Goes to College...and learns why they can't keep down their costs will be published by the Harvard University Press this summer, echoes the sentiments of many administrators when he urges students to take the rankings with a grain of salt.
"Institutions don't change in quality from year to year--that's just U.S. News changing its formula," he said. "True quality means a lot of things to a lot of people, and U.S. News doesn't take that into account."