<p>The example proves nothing…i’ll bet there has been a similar example if a student who rose from the community college level to donate huge money to a worthy cause…BUT, it is a rarity…Just like there are likely some Ivy Leaguers working at Starbucks, not corporate,but as barristers. ;)</p>
<p>To annasdad’s theory about the school not contributing to the person’s success - </p>
<p>There was a study recently about income and where someone went to school, initially and 10 years later.</p>
<p>I am paraphrasing from memory but here it goes.</p>
<p>The authors claimed that people who made about the same amount of money going to not so famous schools 10 years after as people who attended the well known schools had one trait that explained it away. They had also applied to the famous schools after high school and considered themselves as good as anyone else. This was supposedly not the case for others who showed up in a lower income bracket after attending the not so famous schools.</p>
<p>On a side note to attest to Loyola not being an unknown entity - dave_berry started a thread about a kid who graduated from UChicago with an MD/PhD at 21. He graduated from Loyola at 12.</p>
<p>I really see money as a side benefit to making other contributions. But I digress. </p>
<p>What bothers me is that despite claims that prestige doesn’t matter, I very rarely hear about any sort of noteworthy businessman, scientist, engineer, or professor from a regular average school. Even though most people end up at Joe’s State College or Unknown private university, the big names in everything usually have degrees from either an Ivy League, or a school of similar prestige such as MIT, caltech, UC Berkeley, Stanford, John’s Hopkins, Carnegie Mellon, UChicago, etc. I would like to hope that it’s really the same drive that got them into such schools that helps them make it in the real world, and that in fact, as long as you have the drive, which college you attend doesn’t matter. I’m still not quite so sure though. It’s really this that bothers me when I consider that I’ll be going to a medium tier flag ship state university next fall.</p>
<p>It’s funny, my dad always tells me that I shouldn’t worry about where I go to college, but he loves bragging about his masters degree from Harvard and his bachelor’s degree from Leningrad State, which was apparently the most selective school in the Soviet Union (I’m from Eastern Europe). He claims Harvard in particular is really something special. Maybe there is something to these Ivy Leagues and Ivy League-ish schools. After all, just the fact that most of the most motivated students in the country end up in such places makes them desirable.</p>
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<p>There are many, many people who are very successful that you simply won’t hear about, since they are behind the scenes and not public. (And yuck - I would never want to be “public.” Better to make your millions quietly and anonymously, IMO)</p>
<p>^ Also very true. Famousness is overrated. I don’t actually work in business anyway. However, watching the news, as well as documentaries, and reading articles on a wide range of subjects often gives a glimpse at the backgrounds of people in certain areas. I’m not necessarily referring to Mark Zuckerburg types or people as famous in pop culture as Neil Degrasse Tyson or Stephan Hawking when it comes to science. It’s probably not the best indicator of whether or not it matters where you go to school, but it’s definitely something that stands out to me.</p>
<p>I think what a lot of people dont realize that an education is an education and in the end YOU make what you want of it.
When I volunteered at a homeless shelter I met people who graduated from Harvard. Yes, they graduated. And a few bad choices still landed them in a homeless shelter.</p>
<p>Reminds me that when my son was in middle school, he made a new friend and was telling me about him. He said he was surprised that the friend’s dad worked “at” K-mart.</p>
<p>I told him that the friend’s dad worked “for” K-mart. He was a VP.</p>
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<p>That’s exactly the right question. The answer, unfortunately, is unclear:</p>
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<p>– Ernest T. Pascarella and Patrick T. Terenzini, “How College Affects Students, Volume 2: A Third Decade of Research.” San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2005, p. 475 [material in quotes is verbatim from the source, material outside of quotes is my summary]</p>
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<p>What you do when you get to that college will have a much larger impact on your future than the fact that you went to that particular college. Studies have shown that when comparing how well students develop critical thinking skills in college (and many would argue that developing critical thinking is a college’s single most important educational function), there is a lot more variation between different students at the same college than there is between student bodies at different colleges.</p>
<p>Why does everyone make absolute statements? Can someone go to a school that is not top ranked and achieve success? Of course. On the flip side does going to a top ranked school ensure success? Of course not. Now does going to a top ranked school increase one’s chance of being successful? That is the pertinent question and in my opinion (wait people are allowed to have opinions on this site?) it sure as hell doesn’t hurt.</p>
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<p>That is cute too. Is it possible that he would not have been where he is today if he had not joined a fraternity? :)</p>
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<p>Or help either. (Opinions are allowed without (much) restriction, but are better if backed with evidence.:eek:)</p>
<p>This is a silly discussion. There are SO many companies and industries. There are many, many CEOs and other senior executives who are leaders in business and in various industries who did not come from the “highly selective” universities. </p>
<p>Jack Kilby invented the integrated circuit. [Jack</a> Kilby - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Kilby]Jack”>Jack Kilby - Wikipedia) Oops- no Harvard!</p>
<p>Mark Shepherd led Texas Instruments, a great company, for many years. I think his degrees were from S. Illinois and SMU.</p>
<p>I worked for an industry-leading company in building products whose CEO (now retired) was one of the most respected executives in the country. He graduated from LSU. </p>
<p>I can’t believe people really think you have to go to one of about 15 schools to be a true success.</p>
<p>Nice summary, straightshooter. The discussion is absolutely silly, repetitive, redundant and pointless.</p>
<p>texaspg’s post (#22) is also spot on.</p>
<p>This is my industry.</p>
<p>[Edison</a> International: Our Company: Edison International Leadership](<a href=“http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/management.asp]Edison”>http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/management.asp)</p>
<p>[Edison</a> International: Our Company: Southern California Edison Leadership](<a href=“http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/mgmt_bios_sce.asp]Edison”>http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/mgmt_bios_sce.asp)</p>
<p>[Edison</a> International: Our Company: Edison Mission Group Leadership](<a href=“http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/mgmt_emg.asp]Edison”>http://www.edison.com/ourcompany/mgmt_emg.asp)</p>
<p>They aren’t all CEOs of Fortune 500s, but I assure you, everyone on these pages does just fine.</p>
<p>And they come from a varied mix of schools. Some elite, some not so elite.</p>
<p>Being SoCal it looks like USC features prominently. Several Cal States on here as well.</p>
<p>It would be great if everyone could get into Harvard and attend for free. But they can’t.
Go to the best school for you that you can afford. Do well. Graduate. Get a job. Work hard. Stop the nonsense.</p>
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<p>Exactly. And it’s also possible to desire a “highly selective” university for your own kid without pretending that it’s the sole / only way to success and / or riches (not that riches is necessarily the same as success, of course).</p>
<p>Actually, at McD’s you can’t progress beyond assistant manager unless you have a college degree. My HS BF was promoted within a year of working there to Asst Mgr but because he didn’t have college degree has never in many long decades of working there been promoted beyond that. McD’s has a lot of opportunities for folks who do get degrees–working “in the trenches” is hot, greasy work, with long hours & lots of standing.</p>
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<p>I wonder if that is McD’s corporate policy or the policy of the franchisee(s) for whom HS BF works. I know for a fact that was not the policy 30 years ago. In fact, it was just the opposite. Most of the people in upper-middle management I worked with were very proud of the fact that their only credentials were from Hamburger U and the School of Hard Knocks and I was treated to several lectures about how my MBA was far inferior to their many years of experience behind the counter (as indeed it was for many important skills).</p>
<p>EDIT: apparently it’s not a corporate requirement. Here’s a job posting by one franchisee:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.mcmississippi.com/7868/25427/default-page/[/url]”>http://www.mcmississippi.com/7868/25427/default-page/</a></p>
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<p>Forget the $40 million donation, forget the colleges, elite or not - this man helped develop THE EGG MCMUFFIN!!
He should be in line for a McArthur ‘Genius’ Grant!!</p>
<p>I would suggest that the EggMcMuffin, and the fact that it proved for McD the feasibility of offering a breakfast menu, possibly he has created more wealth for his organization than have a lot of McArthur grantees have for theirs. 
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<p>He worked for one franchisee for years but I’m sure over the decades he’s worked at others but when we last spoke 20 years ago or so, he had not been promoted above the same rank of ASST MGR he achieved after a year on the job. I feel bad for him but have lost contact. He was calling from another state, so I’m assuming he was working there, but didn’t inquire. Hope he did further his education as he was a very bright guy with lots of potential.</p>
<p>I agree that helping develop the Egg McMuffin was brilliant–one of my favorite on-the-run breakfasts!</p>