While I agree the "ranking schmaking" works for some, it may not be the best route for all. There are some things to consider. For example, as has been stated, if you want to get into a prestigous residency, you may find that prestegious people work at the schools with the highest research funding (hence higher rankings for the school), and those prestegious professors may have connections to help you get internships or set you up with research projects, etc. Additionally, schools get selected by companies to offer fellowships and intern positions specifically to students from that school. Programs may, possiby, look at highly ranked schools.
Again this is speculation-- of course everyone can do well and accomplish great things at any school regardless of ranking, if they have the motivation. I don't think it is really the rankings that determine the outcome. Don't get me wrong, I ignored high ranked programs in my choice because I did not like their program and it did not align with my goals. I do, however, think that students need to do serious research into each program and find out what opportunities the program may or may not have to offer, to determine if that program will allow them to maximize their potential. Some students want a lot of clinical experience, some a lot of retail training, some want research opportunities. Students should consider those factors when determining if a program fits. For some people, the fit may or may not be influenced by rankings, but I wouldn't necssarily agree that every program is just as good as another. As we have seen from many postings on this board some people have very strong problems with their program.
