The Application Process

so i realized there's a section in the application for all the schools i'm applying to where they ask you to list other schools you're applying to.

is it okay to leave them blank? or is it advised to be honest and really list the names?

It's good to be honest to some degree. Most schools won't ask you about it and use it just to keep stats. When my wife interviewed with U of Chicago (Alumni interview), they not only asked her, but challenged her on whether or not MIT was a good finance school. The interviewer (asshole) called up a friend from MIT to discover that yes, MIT was a good finance school.

The moral of the story is that you only tell the school about programs to which you are applying that MATCH your goals. No point saying you're applying to NYU or Columbia if your goal is to work in Silicon Valley.