<p>What is the point of going to an Ivy League vs. a state school? To make this personal, I'm hoping to attend medical school after I finish my undergrad. Let's say I get into Harvard, where I know I'll get below a 3.0 GPA. Compare that with a 3.8+ GPA from a state school. Wouldn't the state school graduate have a higher shot at medical school admissions(assuming MCAT scores were similar)? Furthermore, there's obviously a lot less work at the state school as compared to Harvard.
I just don't get it. I think I'm missing something here. Why would anyone want to go to Harvard at all?</p>
<p>Why do people go to great restaurants?</p>
<p>Why am I attracted to the pretty girl?</p>
<p>Who wants to drive a reliable car?</p>
<p>Your goal is to be a physician. Then you better grow in your ability to put yourself in others’ shoes. Not everyone wants to be a physician. And some want to be one after attending a fine academic institution like Harvard. In your tone, they are complete idiots.</p>
<p>Are are you just looking to flame people? Again, nice job, future doc.</p>
<p>Connections and above all, people are vain. It’s extremely self-gratifying to know that you went to an Ivy.</p>
<p>I like how you assume that everyone wants to be a physician.</p>
<p>@T26E4 I wasn’t trying to ridicule anyone. I am just legitimately curious; it’s something I’ve been wondering for a long time. And, based on Syoung2’s answer, I still have no idea why someone would. I honestly am looking for a legitimate answer.</p>
<p>@Syoung: people who attend those schools aren’t as shallow as you make them to be. They actually offer an excellent education and vanity was much more rare than common. One gets quickly humbled due to the extraordinary people around you. No one struts around like a rooster in the farm yard. </p>
<p>I’m happy I went to a school that gave me a great education and 4 wonderful years – but I think I’d feel the same if I attended a non-Ivy too. How is what I feel different than what a happy Notre Dame or USC alumnus feels?</p>
<p>I mean…doesn’t the same apply for law school, engineering school, etc…And I’m looking at graduate school to be honest, not some personal satisfaction.</p>
<p>@Happy: I have a classmate who turned down a full ride at her state college to attend our HYP alma mater. She ended up applying and attending back at her home state University for med school. Our senior year, she honestly told me she wished she had gone to the state school, saved her money, and attended our Ivy med school. And she still could say she loved her time at our college. </p>
<p>I agree that it’s a sacrifice for some would-be docs to attend an HYP school. But many alumni do go onto med school. But I would say that most who attend these schools do not view them as only stepping stones to the next stage (med school, wall street, grad school, whatever). They legitimately search for and often find, a great undergraduate experience. Hope this answers it for you.</p>
<p>Law schools can be very conscious of admitted students from top colleges. Less so w/med but it still exists. Barely at all for engineering.</p>
<p>Yes, I know I’m being very shallow about this. But, if you wanted to maximize your chances of getting into medical school (or law or engineering or whatever @CantConcentrate…) wouldn’t it be best to go to a state school? If we were only considering maximizing your chances.</p>
<p>If your goal is to go to med school, you would almost certainly be better off going to a state school where the classes and the test curves are easier. But if you desire the chance to learn more with smarter peers who will force you to stretch your abilities, then an elite school might be a better choice, even if your grades suffer somewhat.</p>
<p>Also, few 17 yr olds are absolutely certain they have the drive, ability and good fortune to be docs. What if I could admit you to a college where you step into a virtual buffet-line of academic offerings that could entice you away from medicine? Would you go down that path? Some do. And turn away from their dreams of being doctors. Is that bad? I don’t think so.</p>
<p>So hypothetically, say that I graduated from HYP with a 3.0 GPA. Graduate school’s pretty much out the window now. What do I do from there?</p>
<p>Honestly, Happy2102, you should have just read one of the 786 or so threads in which people have ruminated ad nauseum on this subject rather than starting another one. And unless you started this thread for the purpose of getting people riled up, I’d recommend bailing now. Go do your homework. Read a book. Watch a movie. Talk to your friends. Work on the apps to the schools to which you want to apply. Don’t worry about prestige or lack of it. Don’t worry about what other people do or why they do it. Apply to schools that offer the programs and the environment that appeal to you and that your family can afford.</p>
<p>this is a joke, right??</p>
<p>I don’t see why people think that I’m joking here. I swear I’m being 100% serious about this. And up to now, I haven’t seen a single response that answered my question besides LoremIpsum’s</p>
<p>And why are you assuming a state school is sooooooo easy that you’d get a 3.8 there but only a 3.0 at Harvard?</p>
<p>@Pizzagirl oh trust me on this one…graduates from my high school with a 2.0 GPA 16 ACT got into the school I’m talking about. Talk to them a lot on Facebook, text, etc. Not one has below a 3.5 GPA. Keep in mind these students’ high school stats.</p>
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<p>If you’re smart enough to get into HYP, you’re smart enough to finish with quite a bit better than a 3.0 average – but you will probably have to work hard for it. I think the average GPA for the Ivies is in the 3.4-3.6 range; it’s not unlike grad school where the typical grade is an A or a B, but students as a whole are more dedicated to working hard and learning to understand their material.</p>
<p>Wow. People are still responding to this.</p>
<p>Well, i guess if no one is going to give a real answer to the question…</p>