There is definitely a mystique about the Ivies -(and Harvard, Yale and Princeton in particular). However, my daughter chose to go to Duke over acceptances at Penn, Brown, Darmouth, and Columbia (and Stamford, Williams and Amherst) - because the fit felt better to her. It's most important to find the right feeling for the student no matter how prestigious one perceives the school to be. It's not the sticker on the back of one's car that's ultimately important... it's how much the student will gain educationally and socially from going to a particular institution.