<p>Isn't it strange that the Atlantic ran a piece this month that was hostile to Harvard and another one last month that was hostile to Princeton? </p>
<p>The article that was hostile to Princeton <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200501/kirn%5B/url%5D">http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200501/kirn</a>, which contains present-tense generalizations like "There is no drug scene like an Ivy League drug scene," was written by a novelist who actually attended when John Lennon died...in 1980! After reading it I realized I had had some similar experiences at another Ivy during the same time period...but that my kids' reports of Princeton have no resemblance to the author's except for the place names. </p>
<p>The Atlantic must be finding that Ivy-bashing is profitable.</p>
<p>Gee, I was posting about The Atlantic's articles...However, it is true that these students seem to be interviewing for and getting hired by the i-banks and consulting firms, rather than by General Motors. But these are separate threads, seems to me.</p>
<p>Yes, it is interesting. Apparently graduating from an Ivy League school still helps you get your foot in the door at the Atlantic Monthly. Even though these articles are negative, I wish they would go further and really challenge the dominance of these institutions in the popular imagination by exploring the possibility of having articles about colleges that are NOT centered on the few most prestigious institutions. For example, I was a little annoyed by their college admissions issues because they claimed they were doing something different, but then the articles accompanying their rankings were focused on the Ivy Leagues just like every other publication that talks about colleges.</p>
<p>lol, I thought the Atlantic Nov. 2003 admissions issue was good because it wasn't Ivy-focused, but rather had articles on the late-decision program, what makes a college good (engaged students), and applying to less, not more, colleges as a strategy.</p>
<p>August, yes, I think you are definitely onto something. These articles are becoming a kind of academic porn in The Atlantic. It's like, "We're going to show you the dirt that you can't possibly resist looking at!"</p>
<p>Aparent5, Be careful with your choice of words. The Alantic Monthly did recently have an article critical of Harvard, but the Atlantic Monthly also ranked an ivy as the top (nontechnical) school in the country. It is important to readers that you display a level of accuracy. In this case, do not lump 7 other Ivys with the one (otherwise it may come across as a feeble attempt at Ivy bashing).</p>
<p>Yeah, aparent5, "academic porn" is a very apt expression for it. I like that. </p>
<p>dudedad, I guess it still seemed to me that the big names were over-represented among examples and quotes given, etc., even while the topics you mentioned were being discussed. I could be remembering wrong, though, as it's been a while.</p>
<p>Alphacdcd, well, to continue my metaphor, paying attention to those rankings is the Atlantic equivalent of reading Playboy for the writing. :-) And I posted links to two different articles, not just one about Harvard!</p>
<p>"...an old Eastern university where pride in high SAT scores compensates for pathetic athletic teams and lame parties. "</p>
<p>sounds a little bitter to me.... maybe someones kid didnt get into an ivy and they want to blame it on rich kids "stealing" the spots with money; by buying SAT scores and such. its increadibly irritating to read. so what if people at ivies have, on average, higher SAT scores than those at KU? they didnt all just pay extra money and get the higher SAT scores, some like me, recieved somewhat higher scores without prep, and even those who did spend money on SAT prep still had to spend extra time on that prep. they still had to work hard.</p>
<p>While "stealing" is a bit harsh, it is sort of interesting to note that while only about 5% of students graduate from private high schools, about 35% of ivy admittees graduated from private high schools.</p>