@fleishmo6 , I live an hour away from NYC. I know a TON of professional people here who did NOT go to HYPSM or NESCAC schools. In fact, the most successful guy I know attended SUNY Plattsburg. The HUGE majority of students in the US attend one of the “other” 3000+ colleges. The ones that are not in the USNWR top 100. These people go on to run businesses, become teachers, work white collar jobs, and on and on. They do not all work at Abercrombie and Fitch or McDonalds. Plenty of educated people are not getting degrees from Harvard, and plenty of educated people are needed in the work force.
The person in post #1 may not be out of left field, but IS off base. Your son went to “super days”; he encountered plenty of students from elite schools and wealthy families. But did they all wear signs around their necks identifying them as such? How did he know they were not “regular”? Did he interview all of them to find out where they went to college? My kid attends a well-known LAC. It is true, a substantial number of students are from wealthy familes, but nearly ten percent of this year’s incoming class are first in their generation to go to college. And it’s amazing, but every time I visit, I simply can’t tell who they are.
Bottom line, the kids who work really hard and achieve are going to do well in life, regardless of where they attend college. Plenty of kids go to Podunk U, and they work hard and have successful lives and careers. Plenty of kids who are NOT privileged work hard, get into Harvard, and have successful lives. Work hard, get an education. BOTTOM LINE. Those things will determine your future, not getting into HYPSM. This is not a post about working at a top Manhattan law firm. It’s a post about going to lesser known colleges, (though it would seem the colleges in the article are a little suspect.) The point is that students should consider lesser known colleges, and that not well known colleges can successfully prepare you for careers.