<p>I'm not going to lie. Prestige matters. My Princeton, Yale, and MIT interviewers all said that they have gotten TONS of advantages simply because of where they went, such as a job without even applying or interviewing for it. The employer, according to all 3, just looks at the institution and hires. However, my MIT interviewer made this seem less so.</p>
<p>What are the most prestigious universities EXCEPT for Harvard (which is clearly first)?</p>
<p>Princeton? Yale? MIT? Stanford? In which order?</p>
<p>Um, they are all pretty equal. There is a tier-HYPMS-all of them are very close in terms of prestige and quality. It depends on who you talk to for prestige. Most west coasters would say that Stanford is on top while easterners would say it goes Harvard then Yale then Princeton. Mit is on top for science. To be honest, once you reach that level there is very little difference in prestige so just go to the one you like the most.</p>
<p>No, I think Harvard is. For example, if you were writing a book and wanted to give someone some credibility, you would probably be like "Harvard Professor Robert Langdon woke up," or whatever. Plus, in college admissions books (or at least two that I know them), the author specifically says something like "Unless you have won the olympics or saved a tribe of Africans (in which case you're going to Harvard, just put this book down), you need to have a well-put-together application."</p>
<p>They just seem to choose Harvard as the epitome of great university.</p>
<p>Not always, on my fave show 24, they always talk about Stanford. "This kid worked hard and made it to Stanford" and other things like that. The show is set in CA so it makes sense that Stanford is their epitome of prestige. Its not only on 24 either. Psychology books, people etc. always associate Stanford as being the best. This is just Stanford, but you will always find people talking about other universities.</p>
<p>yeah.. it probably depends where in the country you are. in this part of NJ, harvard is #1, princeton definitely #2, then yale #3. MIT and Stanford maybe tied for a distant 4.</p>
<p>On the 24 thing, it may be because Robert Cochran, who graduated from Stanford in 71, and got his law degree from the farm in 74 is the shows co-creator, co-executive producer and co-head writer.</p>
<p>What do you expect from the alumni interviewers? There are some people who are going to be extremely proud of attending an ivy for the rest of their lives. This can be a little pathetic at times, like Al Bundy being proud of his high school football career. Beyond this, they are put into the position of selling the school, like Mercedes dealers talking about the world of difference between Mercedes and BMW. </p>
<p>If you don't know what the 2nd most prestigious college is, then your question is meaningless. Prestige is subjective. If you don't know, then who else would know?</p>
<p>I think yale used to be 2nd, and then Princeton came up chanllenged Harvard for the 1st.. (so now its 2nd.. Harvard still has the advantage) Well MIT and stanford aren't ivies, so they are in a completely different ground. (no, i'm not saying are not as respected )They are very obviously respected as well...</p>
<p>so: Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and like somebody else said, MIT and Standford's pretty much tied (although it might depend on what their majors were.. if its related to mechanical, science, etc, then the person who went to MIT probably will get the advantage... If its a law related field, person who went to Harvard will probably get the advantage)</p>
<p>I think a lot of people around here (Texas) who don't know about Harvard's pains-of-the-moment view it as THE SCHOOL - if I were to say I was going to Harvard, people would just go "oh..." and then feel subordinate. It's sad but true. Right now, I think Yale and Stanford are tied for 2nd most prestigious - they seem to be "the hot universities of the moment"</p>
<p>Well, first of all congrats for getting into those awesome schools. But I think the most important thing is what will you be studying? When it comes to prestige, all of them stimulate the same reaction (wow...u must be smart!)...but you should focus on the strengths of each schools programs and then decided where you want to go (visit the campus as well...I love Stanford's campus).</p>
<p>nesa1188 gives sound advice. You really need to visit all three places to see which you like the best in terms of location and which offers the best program in your intended major.</p>
<p>Prestige is not a measure of how good a school is or how hard it is to graduate. It is a feeling- by its very nature not wholly justifiable. So your Cornell arguement is tangential to the whole issue of prestige</p>
<p>The high school juniors are taking over CC again. They would be better off reading the posts from the high school seniors than getting in the stupid arguments about prestige.</p>