<p>No. It’s not a dependency. There however a correlation. If you want to examine historically old schools, well… 1) schools were typically built in cities to make them more accessible to people. 2) Those schools that have a long history helped, at least partially, to build the cities in which they are located. (E.g. the fact that there are a number of top schools in Boston contributes to it’s economy since these top schools attract a number of large corporations looking to hire the best/brightest.) Somewhat “newer” schools would have developed within the cities, e.g. their locations fostered their growth, therefore they grew in prestige. You might say location in a city helps to potentially foster a school, but it’s not a requirement. E.g. Williams is NOT anywhere near a city, yet is still a very wealthy LAC. Cornell is also not in a city. There’s obviously a much better explanation that could be given, but that’s the gist of it.</p>