Yeah but again, from what I hear, most of these reports are based on the number of publications of a school / graduate-student related activites.
Do you think this really represents the competitivity at the undergraduate level ?
And aren't non-english school misrepresented by these rankings ?
US News also ranked the undergrad programs when I first entered- at least the top five.
One other good measure of the competitiveness at the undergrad level is average ACT/SAT score if your school breaks down the numbers by undergrad major. If your program's average ACT score is a 32 or above, it's probably fair to say your program qualifies as competitive. If it's below 28-29, it probably doesn't.
I hate to say it, but the non-English, and in fact, non-North-American schools are at a bit of a disadvantage when it comes to getting into American schools. The equivalent of UIUC in India, for example, probably doesn't show up on most American schools' radar screens, but most admissions committees know all the details of the strong and weak programs at almost every flagship state school in the US. That said, I'm sure British students have an advantage on us when it comes time to apply at LSE and the Indian students have an advantage on us when it comes time to apply at IIM. Things are probably the same in China. There are strong schools in nearly every country, and the smarter investment banks get that and hire accordingly.