<p>Statistical studies have shown that people who go to the most prestigious schools make more money than people who don't. Interestingly, more recent studies have shown that people who are accepted to the HYP and decide to go somewhere else are as successful at making money as people who actually go to HYP. The meaning of this seems to be that some people are more likely to be successful no matter where they actually go to school.</p>
<p>Of course, success in life isn't all about making money. I certainly think that a person's choice of spouse is more important than choice of college.</p>
<p>I work back and forth between the business world and the academic world. People in academia don't give people much credit for practical experience, but feel that they only have a superficial knowledge of the subject. People in the workplace don't give people much credit for what courses they have taken, but want to know what the person has actually done. Except for some difference in getting the first job, I don't think that where you went to school matters at all in the workplace. Other factors outweigh it.</p>
<p>Every year about 1.2 million kids graduate from high school. All of the "top" colleges altogether can only take about 50,000 into their freshman classes. The frenzy about colleges is driven by parents to some extent, but I think it is more the kids. Somebody posted yesterday about how their daughter was upset about having to go to Rice after being denied at all of the Ivy League schools. I don't think that going to Rice is going to be a problem later in life for her.</p>