<p>One might argue that all of those schools (well, probably with the exception of MIT/Caltech) want to be Harvard, and that each of them is just an imitation.</p>
<p>But, being less cynical, I don’t think Penn’s desire to join the perceived ranks of those schools is necessarily the same as wanting to be one of them per se. What I think this means is that Penn perceives itself (and rightfully so) as being a unique institution of higher learning, replete with a world-class faculty, lush urban campus, and resources galore, but that is often unjustly overlooked by talented applicants in favor of schools with more famous names. So, Penn’s desire to raise its profile is not merely to satisfy the egos of its alumni (although, from where I sit, that wouldn’t be an objectionable side effect :-P), but rather to continue to build on an already “excellent” foundation by being able to compete for the most creative and/or sharp young minds that may otherwise be attracted to the aforementioned heavy hitters. (And also, to a lesser extent I imagine considering Penn’s already excellent reputation, to attract faculty whose ideas will further illustrate Penn as a nidus of innovation.) Then, those same minds can flourish within the context of Penn’s already distinct academic environment and philosophy, and perhaps then translate their Penn experience into practice in changing the world (or whatever other grandiose dream to which college graduates are supposed to aspire), theoretically in a way they may not have envisioned had they had a different educational experience. It’s not that none of the other schools mentioned (or many, many others) already wouldn’t provide such an environment, but Penn (and every other school) feels that its intellectual milieu will not only influence, but be influenced by, the minds of its students–and the greater the quality of those minds, the greater and better the influence.</p>