However, in 2022, several prominent law schools withdrew from the U.S. News Rankings due to disapproval of how they ranked schools. Those withdrawals led to further debate and withdrawals, including from many medical schools.
With medical education across the U.S. now highly standardized, critics say the rankings exaggerate differences between schools and rely on unscientific factors that don’t reflect true quality.
As one study put it: “The methods used by U.S. News & World Report to rank medical schools are based on factors that can be measured easily but do not reflect the quality of a medical school from either a student or patient perspective.”
As a parent or student, you may be wondering what this means for you and your future plans. Let’s break down how the rankings could be useful and how students should and should not utilize them in their search for medical school.
Use our free Med School Chance Predictor to calculate your odds of acceptance at MD and DO programs nationwide. Enter your GPA, MCAT, and other metrics to see your odds at each school.
U.S. News used to rank medical schools based on easy-to-research metrics, such as GPA and MCAT scores of matriculants. This ranking, which was the most prominent, led schools to start accepting students with higher GPAs and MCAT scores, disincentivizing holistic admissions.
They would give schools a numerical rank, even if schools right next to each other were effectively the same quality of outcome. This practice gave an impression of a much larger disparity in quality than really existed.
A significant criticism of the old methodology was the lack of transparency in scoring schools. Another criticism was how money influenced the rankings.
Because the rankings also considered students’ average indebtedness, schools were incentivized to find students who were less likely to need financial aid. The dean of Harvard Medical School said that this sort of ranking led to “perverse incentives” and “unintended consequences.”
Even as some schools brazenly lied to boost their rankings, prospective students still relied heavily on these rankings. In 2022/2023, though, many schools started dropping out because of the way the U.S. News used to do these rankings.
Now, U.S. News ranks medical schools in America based on multiple (self-reported) measures of a program’s quality, such as:
In 2024, the outlet tried a four-tier system instead of a numbered ranking to address criticisms. Eligible schools would fall under Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, or Tier 4. Schools are listed alphabetically under each tier.
Read Next: 30 Easiest Medical Schools to Get Into
Still, more schools continue to pull their data in recent years. Programs that do not submit their data to U.S. News & World Report are marked as “Unranked.” As of 2025, at least 20% of medical schools in America no longer submit data for this report.
Several of the most well-known and highly ranked medical schools have withdrawn from the annual med school rankings in U.S. News. This is due to criticisms of its methodology and unintended consequences, including disadvantaging underserved communities.
I think schools should be applauded for making this difficult decision. Programs are finally taking a stand against the lack of transparency for such an impactful outlet and the “perverse incentives” that rankings put on admissions committees.
As of last year, about 20% of the top 100 medical schools were unranked because they chose not to submit data in protest of the flawed methodology. Withdrawn schools include Columbia University School of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Stanford, Duke, and the University of Pennsylvania.
It seems that the schools that were going to withdraw have already done so, so the number of schools that submit will likely hold steady. However, withdrawn schools are unlikely to return.
I believe that the new tiered approach gives a fairer picture of how medical schools compare in terms of general reputation and prestige. After all, is there really a meaningful prestige difference between a school ranked #4 and #5?
Probably not. They’re both Tier 1 programs.
However, I also think that “prestige” alone should not guide your decision on where to go to medical school. The reality is that you will receive similar education and training no matter which U.S.-accredited med school you choose to attend.
The “prestige” of your medical school probably won’t matter too much for your career either. It may play a marginal role in matching into certain competitive subspecialties. But for most residency programs, your USMLE scores, your research experience, and your letters of evaluation will matter a lot more for your chance of matching.
This is why I encourage students to think about other factors, besides “prestige”, when deciding which medical school to attend. Our MedSchoolExplorer uses holistic “ranking” methods to help students recognize what makes sense for them individually based on scores, potential specialty focus, location, tuition, and other factors. (All without a harmful numeric ranking.)
No single number should be used to judge a medical school. It oversimplifies med school excellence and creates “perverse incentives” for medical school admissions officers.
U.S. News’ emphasis on research output and clinical reputation is reasonable, but schools should be judged for their ability to train tomorrow’s healers — something rankings alone cannot comprehend.
Here are other factors to consider when choosing where to apply:
At MedSchoolCoach, our Physician Advisors know that looking for the right medical school can be a daunting task with so many conflicting voices. Rankings are only one factor when choosing a program. MedSchoolCoach is dedicated to providing holistic data and tips for choosing the right med school for your unique situation.
The reality is that US News Rankings are flawed at best and perpetuate high stress among higher education applicants at worst. The bottom line is that great physicians are produced from every single medical school in the country and beyond.
Browse our free Med School Explorer tool to view key stats for each medical school, including GPA/MCAT, tuition, class size, secondary essays, interview format, and more. Filter and compare schools to build a personalized school list in minutes.
In the upcoming months, watch for how U.S. News continues to update its ranking of both medical schools and undergraduate colleges. Many are watching to see if U.S. News will continue to use its new four-tiered ranking system, or if they will make major changes to how they tier schools next year.
U.S. News doesn’t rank residency programs. The changes to med school ranking have impacted residency applications by increasing the importance of standardized test scores, clinical hours, and personal essays.
If you’re looking for help creating a school list or just want to double your chances at making it into medical school, you’re in the right place.
Build your application alongside a doctor with admissions experience, and join the 95% of clients who get into medical school.