I’m still learning as I spend time here, @SeinfeldFan1.
People here have so much information to impart. I’ve bookmarked too many threads, and have now begun to place comments in a side folder.
@Juillet is a prime example of commenters from whom much information and insight can be gleaned.
I’ve got four kids and our options (it is a family affair) have really broadened and expanded by doing a little background work on some of the schools that others have brought to my attention.
I wish you all the best as you undertake your search and selection process.
I think the majority of people on here are concerned about career opportunities and grad school admissions. Prestige in the eyes of employers is both regional and varies by field.
Tufts definitely isn’t a “no-name school” in most parts of the country. But yes, the Midwestern states are generally hung up their large public schools and really don’t recognize the elite but slightly less-famous schools on the coasts. At my first job after college, a friend of mine who went to Smith was routinely annoyed because no one at work had heard of it. She was actually passed over for a promotion for a person who went to the boss’s alma mater–U of Akron.
I did my grad work at Penn, and when I’d come home to the Midwest to see my family I stopped wearing my Penn sweatshirt because people kept harassing me about Joe Paterno.
Having said that, you should absolutely go to the best school you can get into (and afford)–even if you’re planning on working in an area of the country that’s more flyover.
