Selecting Universities/Schools

The general strategy to select university/school for your graduate study (especially PhD) involves

1) Identifying your areas of interest

2) Identifying the research areas of professors listed in a particular school/university

3) Matching your areas of interest and the listed areas of research in a particular school. Only select those schools that offer a program that matches your interest.
If you applying for PhD, make sure that the faculty of your interest is active in the respective areas of research. Go through their publications and note down the date of publications. Choose those professors/his research interest who is actively involving in publishing journal articles/research work. Do not choose those faculty who are dormant for years (the research publication dates will indicate it).

4) "US news rankings" ranks schools in US based on several criteria. Select those schools that interest you the most (depending on your own criteria - some may prefer to study in a school that is nearer to their state or in the same state, some prefer schools that offers lower fee structure etc..,)

5) Shortlist 7 to 8 schools (this list may contain - 2 to 3 top-10 schools , 3 to 4 medium profile schools (where you have a fairly good chance of securing an admit) and 3 to 4 low profile schools (where the probability of getting an admit is almost one) ).

6) You can also select schools based on funding (that suits your needs), location (like schools nearer to science parks or business parks - it is easier to find a job in such locations after graduation),research output of the department/school,faculty profile etc..