<p>I know this topic has probably been touched on before. But, my friend and I just got into a discussion about it and I thought I would see what opinions you all have on the subject.</p>
<p>Basically, the argument is this: I am a higher end student at a less-presitigous state college, and my friend is an average student at a more-prestiguos college. Will be looked at differently by employers? Am I getting a less-quality education simply because I'm not at a prestigious university even if I am working hard, if not harder, to remain at the higher end of academics?</p>
<p>To me, it just sort of bothers me how people that go to big name colleges, like MIT or Yale, you name it, and, even if they are at the bottom of academics, or have low GPA, they still believe they are above a student like me from an average college who has a good GPA.</p>
<p>Well, yeah, so that's my rant. Let me know what you guys think.</p>
<p>If you are taking full advantage of what your college and professors offer, you will likely find success. And probably with a whole lot less debt than your friends at the bigger name schools. There are advantages to both approaches – what you really don’t want to be is the low end student at the average school. But generally as a hiring manager, I would rather have the top student from the average school than a bottom quartile student from a top school. Unless the bottom quartile student had some excellent work experience or something like that to set them apart.</p>
<p>One thing you may find is that corporations may send more recruiters to a bigger name school. So you may have to work harder to dig up a good internship and get interviews when you are graduating. Your college placement office may not be as helpful, and your alumni network may not be as strong. But if you are organized and aggressive in your search, you can also overcome this.</p>
<p>Really, it is best to avoid this conversation with your friends. They have an investment in the “prestigious” school, and are likely to kind of be jerks about it. Don’t bring it up, and change the subject if they do. If they are obnoxious about it in spite of this, find new friends…</p>
<p>I don’t see the logic here if you were a good student why didn’t you apply to good colleges and went to a good college. Colleges like MIT accepts student who are exceptional and a student who is not hardworking can’t get admission in such colleges trust me.
The thing which truly matters is that weather you want to get education because you want to make money or are you really passionate to get yourself educated. If you want to make money than you should have gotten into a good college in the first place. But if your looking for education than it doesn’t matter in which college you are in my opinion.</p>
<p>Some people love prestige - they have to go to the most expensive college, wear the most expensive clothes and drive the most expensive car - whether to please themselves or others. </p>
<p>College serves a purpose - to get an education. You selected your college for a reason - whether it be personal or financial. People are always going to question your college because they probably have not heard of it but it wouldn’t surprise me if your college has had accomplishments that the big schools have not. </p>
<p>College is what you make of it, with the key person being you. Will your friend have a slight advantage in the workplace, maybe? But remember people go to colleges for all different reasons. Some people will work for their family business right after college a job to them is on the back burner. Others go to college and get a degree in anything because it a prerequisite for their career. </p>
<p>The most important thing is to focus on yourself. You will do just fine.</p>
<p>I am pretty sure this poster does not understand the US college system very well. I assume the OP went to the state college he did because he qualified for in-state tuition. Thus potentially saving himself as much as $160,000 over the course of four years, depending on his family’s financial situation. Or he may have other reasons for staying close to home (family issues that require him to be nearby, for example). The top colleges have a very small number of spaces and are very, very expensive. You don’t need a Rolex to tell time… and you don’t have to go to an Ivy or top 10 college to get a good education. And plenty of people make a lot of money in this country without an Ivy or top 10 college education. Once you are into your first job, it is pretty much all about how hard you work, how smart you are, and your personal qualities. Your degree does not come up very often.</p>
<p>The way I see it, the top student will succeed wherever he/she goes whether it’s a top school or an average school.</p>
<p>In regards to your second question, the top student at the average college will beat out the average student at the more prestigious college. There is a reason a lot of employers recruit at a wide array of universities. They know there are a few diamonds in the rough, so to speak. They also know, not every applicant from university ‘x’ is going to be a top student. You would be surprised at how many people get into top tier schools only to graduate with a mediocre GPA and little to no internship/work experience.</p>
<p>Obviously the best scenario would be a top student at a top university.</p>
<p>If you’re a top student at an ‘average college’ there’s no reason you can’t have the same success at top colleges. You’d most likely have to work harder is all. Likewise, if you’re overly lazy/party too much, you’ll fail at either. They aren’t going to dole out free study abroad to slackers, nor will employers be impressed. I think the data on this shows that going to a top school doesn’t really help, on average, unless you’re from low SES. The few with this background at top schools really benefit from networking and research opportunity they probably wouldn’t have otherwise, plus it often means not having to take out loans.</p>
<p>A younger guy that I play tennis with from time to time went to a local second-tier and got a job at a nice firm in Boston. He works with other recent graduates from more prestigious Boston schools. They tease him about the school that he went to but he does the same work that they do. They also complain to each other about their student loans.</p>
<p>I think that the brand-name university gives graduates a leg-up on getting that first job. They get the benefit of the doubt when a hiring manager is going through a stack of resumes. But get that first job and show them what you can do and you can be competitive too.</p>
But generally as a hiring manager, I would rather have the top student from the average school than a bottom quartile student from a top school. Unless the bottom quartile student had some excellent work experience or something like that to set them apart.</p>