“@ThankYouforHelp I disagree. While I would not say they are easy, they are, by institutional conscription, tailored to foster both cultivation and successful matriculation. So, while they are filled with highly motivated A-types, what you donʻt cite or acknowledge is the educational paradigm which they employ and the exorbitant cost of instruction. By way of specific example, Yale has a high-touch, and invariably high cost model, that makes the actual cost of instruction closer to 150K per student. Each student in the residential college is basically on a status monitor with the master of the respective college, who also coordinates with respective assistant deans, and this is even before you get into the oversight per specific majors. I have had deans tell me verbatim that it is very difficult to flunk out of Yale. So, yes they are smart and industrious, but it comes with a large educational overlay.”
Reading what you wrote, that doesn’t make these schools “famously easy.” It makes them famously successful at what they are trying to do - challenge the best students but put them in an atmosphere where they are likely to succeed at meeting those challenges.
Yes, it is unusual for Yale-caliber students to flunk out of Yale. That is not because Yale is easy, but because these are terrific, well-prepared highly motivated students and they are getting the best support possible to ensure that they are able to do their best work. And if they do their best work, what would be the purpose of giving them a low grade for it?
There is a certain anti-elitist thread running through many in America that requires them to believe that State U is just as tough as Harvard, but it simply isn’t true.