对于想出国留学的朋友而言，如何挑选一所理想的学校是一件颇费心思的事。最近美国一家媒体机构开出了一份2005年美国最热门的25大学排行榜。其中既有大名鼎鼎的哈佛、耶鲁等国际著名大学，也有一些名不见经传的高校。进入这一排行榜的标准是多样化的，除学术研究的实力以外，还有另外的标准。虽然这些标准的选择带有一定的主观性，不过从中我们也能看到国外高等教育的多元性，以及美国人自己眼中的热门院校。
Competition's intense and there are scores of colleges. Large, small, public, private, urban, rural — what's best for you? Here are our top picks for the places that everyone's talking about for 2005.
Newsweek2005 edition - Pull apart the DNA of a student's dream school and you'll find so many different strands. Perhaps it's the location, either in the rolling countryside far from anything that resembles a sidewalk, or in the midst of a hip urban neighborhood. It could be a college's unique educational mission or the array of quirky personalities on campus. Maybe it's the outstanding labs or libraries or theaters, even the fitness center. All 25 colleges on the Hot List for 2005 have one thing in common: they provide an outstanding education. But what makes them hot is their differences and special traits.
Although all these schools have demonstrated continuing excellence, various qualities made many of them stand out in 2004. The Iraq war, as well as its aftermath, highlighted the importance of well-educated military leadership and made some students think of applying to Annapolis（安纳波利斯: 美国海军军官学校）or West Point（西点军校: 美国军事学院）. The debate over Early Decision (ED) admissions policies prompted a number of applicants to try schools like Yale or Stanford that have led the effort to reduce ED stress on students. The controversy over affirmative action motivated other students to seek out schools like Wesleyan（卫斯理）that celebrate diversity. Another trend has been increased attention to quality-of-life issues: good dorms, good food, an active social life, a range of student organizations. There's also a growing focus on what happens at the end of four years. Is the career center helpful? How many students get jobs or are accepted into the graduate schools of their choice? With tuition and fees at private universities topping $40,000 a year, these are serious questions.
To compile this admittedly subjective list, we interviewed students, admissions officers and longtime observers of the admissions process. The applicant pool for all these schools has grown much stronger in recent years — not only in sheer numbers of students applying but also in test scores, grades and extracurricular accomplishments. Some schools on our list have international reputations. Others aren't widely known out-side their region. But they are all someone's dream school. Maybe yours? Herewith, America's Hottest Colleges for 2005.
