I’ve observed that truly affluent families are blasé about where their kids go to college

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The true upper class? They aren't strivers. Striving is very middle class. Obsessing over getting your kid into Harvard? Very UMC, MC.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varsity_Blues_scandal

Like these people? Mostly White affluent people obsessed enough to go this far.

No one involved was actually upper class the way pp is using the term. If they were, their kids would have been development admits at the same schools they attended. At best, these were new money families who didn't understand how to legally work the system or who could afford to work the system the traditional way

Yes, that's what I meant.
They are very UMC/MC obsessed with getting kids into prestige schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are absolutely rich people in Omaha, Milwaukee, Columbus, Birmingham and Detroit.

Of course.

I grew up in Milwaukee and the equivalent of this among the "Milwaukee elite" is Indiana University, CU Boulder, Miami of OH...

Interesting. I am originally from the Midwest, married a Midwesterner, and have lived on East coast now for nearly three decades. The elites in the Midwest cities I know (five across four states) want their kids at elite NE and CA schools as well as Duke, Emory, Vanderbilt. Some will end up at them - full pay geo diversity is still attractive - but some end up on PP's list.

I lived around the Midwest for decades. There are indeed a few people who want their kids to get a little Northeast polish. I lived in one rural town of 5000 where people were puzzled about kids going to Williams, Bates, & Smith. Those were true outliers. The more run-of-the-mill social climbers would pick Notre Dame, Northwestern, & Michigan.

Are run of the mill social climbers really elites? I don't think so.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The true upper class? They aren't strivers. Striving is very middle class. Obsessing over getting your kid into Harvard? Very UMC, MC.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varsity_Blues_scandal

Like these people? Mostly White affluent people obsessed enough to go this far.

No one involved was actually upper class the way pp is using the term. If they were, their kids would have been development admits at the same schools they attended. At best, these were new money families who didn't understand how to legally work the system or who could afford to work the system the traditional way

Yes, that's what I meant.
They are very UMC/MC obsessed with getting kids into prestige schools.

Most UMC/MC are not obsessed like that.
The try to follow the rules and get their kids to the best possible school they can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are absolutely rich people in Omaha, Milwaukee, Columbus, Birmingham and Detroit.

Of course.

I grew up in Milwaukee and the equivalent of this among the "Milwaukee elite" is Indiana University, CU Boulder, Miami of OH...

Interesting. I am originally from the Midwest, married a Midwesterner, and have lived on East coast now for nearly three decades. The elites in the Midwest cities I know (five across four states) want their kids at elite NE and CA schools as well as Duke, Emory, Vanderbilt. Some will end up at them - full pay geo diversity is still attractive - but some end up on PP's list.

This is the matriculation list for University School of Milwaukee which is the $$$ private school there.

https://www.usm.org/upperschool/matriculation

IDK the demographics (full pay, gender, etc) of this school as well as how many schools on this list have mutiple admits, but there are clearly families with kids enrolling @ Berkeley, Cal Tech, Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, Michigan (some may argue but there are historical reasons why some groups remain loyal to this school over generations), Northwestern, Rice, Sarah Lawrence, Stanford, and Yale. Then some at the next tier of Case, Chapel Hill, Colgate, Hamilton, Tufts, Wake Forest, and Wash U.

Then there are schools on the list where some may be attending because they are in need of merit, not as strong students, or family money spawn.

So ten(ish) admits to 63 schools on this list and then another seven(ish) to another tier - that's roughly 30% in aggregate. It's not like an east coast independent, but there is not a Big Ten conference here of caliber schools. If I was UMC, but not generationally wealthy in the Midwest, I would probably encourage my DC to attend a public UG or a lot of merit LAC to continue to save cash for DC's grad school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Affluent southern people generally don’t care, OP. Their kids go to Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, or Ole Miss where their family all attended and where they have board positions and influence. Parents actually teach their kids how to party and it’s considered an important part of college. The intellectual types might go to Hillsdale or W&L - if their parents did. Because a PP nailed it: there is a caste system and that plus nepotism is more important than anything there. Being in the right social circle is everything. You don’t need to go to Stanford to get a job at daddy’s firm. Who wants to be with people who aren’t influenced by their last name, exposed to all those liberal elites, and compete on merit for academics, sports, and social status when they can slide it to the top of everything close to home?

Yep, except - Hillsdale? Lol. But people here aren't wowed by Ivy pedigrees. If someone was already connected and then went to an Ivy, fine. But if someone from outside the circle with a fancy degree moves there -- not impressive, the degree itself won't land them "in the circle."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Affluent southern people generally don’t care, OP. Their kids go to Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, or Ole Miss where their family all attended and where they have board positions and influence. Parents actually teach their kids how to party and it’s considered an important part of college. The intellectual types might go to Hillsdale or W&L - if their parents did. Because a PP nailed it: there is a caste system and that plus nepotism is more important than anything there. Being in the right social circle is everything. You don’t need to go to Stanford to get a job at daddy’s firm. Who wants to be with people who aren’t influenced by their last name, exposed to all those liberal elites, and compete on merit for academics, sports, and social status when they can slide it to the top of everything close to home?

Yep, except - Hillsdale? Lol. But people here aren't wowed by Ivy pedigrees. If someone was already connected and then went to an Ivy, fine. But if someone from outside the circle with a fancy degree moves there -- not impressive, the degree itself won't land them "in the circle."

Yes, Hillsdale. Evangelical intellectuals like it.

But yes, who you are related to is all that really matters. It gets you on the team regardless of talent, in the right fraternity/sorority regardless of your resume, and lands you all your jobs regardless of merit.

[Anonymous]

I have worked in the tech industry for a very long time. I know many uber rich families but for the most part you would have no clue how wealthy they are. They came from good schools but not not top 20 schools. For the most part, they do not lead extavagant lifestyles and have no interest in conspicous consumption. For my friends whose kids are looking at college, they are not fixated on the elite schools but best fits. This is a stark contrast to what I see on the East Coast.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Houston is very international, diverse, and immigrant/transplant heavy. It never felt "good old boy" to me. Dallas is a little more "good old boy" but still diverse, transient, and international enough that it doesn't feel so bad compared to...I don't know...Birmingham or Shreveport or somewhere like that.

After evolving into cosmopolitan cities, Houston, Dallas or Austin are no longer a reflection of real Texas or south.

What is "real Texas"? The metropolitan areas that contain over half of the state's population are not "real"? I don't get it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have worked in the tech industry for a very long time. I know many uber rich families but for the most part you would have no clue how wealthy they are. They came from good schools but not not top 20 schools. For the most part, they do not lead extavagant lifestyles and have no interest in conspicous consumption. For my friends whose kids are looking at college, they are not fixated on the elite schools but best fits. This is a stark contrast to what I see on the East Coast.

Sure you do...if that is the case, why is that many of the uber rich tech people we have heard about (tech founders, VC partners, etc.) seem to send their kids to elite schools? Gates' kids went to Stanford. Bezos' kid went to Princeton and transferred to MIT. The richest person in India sent their kid to Yale. The list goes on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have worked in the tech industry for a very long time. I know many uber rich families but for the most part you would have no clue how wealthy they are. They came from good schools but not not top 20 schools. For the most part, they do not lead extavagant lifestyles and have no interest in conspicous consumption. For my friends whose kids are looking at college, they are not fixated on the elite schools but best fits. This is a stark contrast to what I see on the East Coast.

Sure you do...if that is the case, why is that many of the uber rich tech people we have heard about (tech founders, VC partners, etc.) seem to send their kids to elite schools? Gates' kids went to Stanford. Bezos' kid went to Princeton and transferred to MIT. The richest person in India sent their kid to Yale. The list goes on.

+100
LOL

[Anonymous]

Billionaire ex-bf (family money, several generations old) went to Carlton.

Famous-name wealthy aunt went to SMU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are absolutely rich people in Omaha, Milwaukee, Columbus, Birmingham and Detroit.

Of course.

I grew up in Milwaukee and the equivalent of this among the "Milwaukee elite" is Indiana University, CU Boulder, Miami of OH...

Interesting. I am originally from the Midwest, married a Midwesterner, and have lived on East coast now for nearly three decades. The elites in the Midwest cities I know (five across four states) want their kids at elite NE and CA schools as well as Duke, Emory, Vanderbilt. Some will end up at them - full pay geo diversity is still attractive - but some end up on PP's list.

I lived around the Midwest for decades. There are indeed a few people who want their kids to get a little Northeast polish. I lived in one rural town of 5000 where people were puzzled about kids going to Williams, Bates, & Smith. Those were true outliers. The more run-of-the-mill social climbers would pick Notre Dame, Northwestern, & Michigan.

I went to a New England slac. The richest people that I knew were from South Dakota and Wisconsin. They both spend a few years in Chicago post graduation, but have returned home to take over family businesses

The wealthiest person I knew at my NE law school was from South Dakota, and also planned to eventually head back to take over the family business. She was also very nice

[Anonymous]

There are very monied Southern Democratic families that on principal will only send their kids to public schools. Seems old-fashioned now but it does exist.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have worked in the tech industry for a very long time. I know many uber rich families but for the most part you would have no clue how wealthy they are. They came from good schools but not not top 20 schools. For the most part, they do not lead extavagant lifestyles and have no interest in conspicous consumption. For my friends whose kids are looking at college, they are not fixated on the elite schools but best fits. This is a stark contrast to what I see on the East Coast.

Sure you do...if that is the case, why is that many of the uber rich tech people we have heard about (tech founders, VC partners, etc.) seem to send their kids to elite schools? Gates' kids went to Stanford. Bezos' kid went to Princeton and transferred to MIT. The richest person in India sent their kid to Yale. The list goes on.

New money has something to prove. Your wealthy tech buddies are old money.

[Anonymous]

So? If you're not truly affluent, does it make sense for you to do the same?