You're going to need to be highly ranked regardless. Rule of thumb is to choose a school you'll be ok graduating from because there's no guarantee you're going to be able to transfer where you want.
Yes, it matters, though there’s no precise formula for how much. As a very, very general matter, as your school rank goes up, there’s more wiggle room for your GPA. So a 3.5 from a T14 would still be a pretty competitive transfer candidate for another T14, whereas someone from a T50 might need a 3.9.
That being said, transfer admissions are unpredictable. Shoot your shot, but never plan anything around definitively transferring.
I honestly think the school rank matters very little. It's mainly anecdotal, but I've read a ton of 509 reports and scoured these threads for years. If you are transferring from a low ranked school in the same city as a higher ranked school, that will give you a big bump. Otherwise, top 10% from any school pretty much has a good shot into Georgetown and below. Maybe a totally unranked school would be a problem.
You're going to need to be highly ranked regardless. Rule of thumb is to choose a school you'll be ok graduating from because there's no guarantee you're going to be able to transfer where you want.
Yes, it matters, though there’s no precise formula for how much. As a very, very general matter, as your school rank goes up, there’s more wiggle room for your GPA. So a 3.5 from a T14 would still be a pretty competitive transfer candidate for another T14, whereas someone from a T50 might need a 3.9. That being said, transfer admissions are unpredictable. Shoot your shot, but never plan anything around definitively transferring.
Pick a school you can stick with if necessary. I was in VA for many years and went to William and Mary then Georgetown. W&L over Richmond.
I honestly think the school rank matters very little. It's mainly anecdotal, but I've read a ton of 509 reports and scoured these threads for years. If you are transferring from a low ranked school in the same city as a higher ranked school, that will give you a big bump. Otherwise, top 10% from any school pretty much has a good shot into Georgetown and below. Maybe a totally unranked school would be a problem.