Why is Brandeis so overrated?

I often hear students attending Brandeis mistakenly referring to it as an “elite school.” Brandeis is not elite nor is it prestigious. Just because it is in the top 40 USNWR rankings doesnt make it “elite.” Literally every other college ranking site ranks Brandeis below many state schools such as the University of North Carolina and even the University of Maryland. Brandeis’ graduate programs are also ranked below many state schools programs as well. I am not trying to dish on Brandeis. It is a good school and definitely above average, but I think people get too carried away when they refer to it as an “elite school” honestly.

I see you’ve made a similar post about the University of Maryland–College Park. Have you attended either Brandeis or the University of Maryland–College Park, @TheGreenSteam? Have you ever taken a class at either? Looks like you attend UMBC, so I’m wondering what your agenda is here on CC other than to throw shade at two fine institutions.

It looks like you attend UM- Baltimore County. Not sure why you need to bash Brandeis or any other school. I know many people who had excellent experiences at Brandeis and have had very good outcomes in terms of jobs and or grad school.

In many ways any college will give back what you put into it. It is important to seek out challenging classes, develop relationships with professors, get involved in campus life etc. If you did transfer to Brandeis and are unhappy either the school is not the right match for you or perhaps you are not taking advantage of the many resources available at the college.

Actually, I attended Johns Hopkins University. And no, I haven’t taken classes there, but I dont have to in order to know that neither are “elite” institutions. I already said that Brandeis is a very good school, I never bashed it, but it is most certainly not an elite school. Nobody needs to go to a school to be aware of what it offers.

You wrote in another thread:

And now you write;

Both these statements cannot be true.

I think a very few number of schools can be called “elite,” and Brandeis, UMCP, and UMBC do not fall into that category. All three are very good schools, but none are
“elite.” An elite university (in my eyes) is a school that is nationally and/or internationally known for being academically rigorous, and constantly cited as being among to top 20 universities in at least several categories. Brandeis is hardly known by non-jewish people outside of Massachusetts, let alone known internationally. Brandeis is an excellent school with many intelligent students, but it is not in the same tier as Harvard, UChicago, Johns Hopkins, Duke, or Georgetown. It is not even as on the same tier as The University of North Carolina or University of Maryland, College Park. The only reason it has such an inflated ranking on USNWR (especially compared to its ranking on almost every other ranking website, which ranks Brandeis much much lower) is because USNWR moreso reflect the economic demographics of the students that attend a university rather than the quality or rigor of the institution. A lot of their parameters for rankings are about money more than quality education, and portraying schools with richer students that discriminate against poor people as better.

MODERATOR’S NOTE:
Closing thread. OP has stated (and restated) his opinion and is firm in his opinion. Any opinions given will simply be repetitive of those given on his previous thread. No need to debate, since that’s a rules violation.