Reply to Top School vs. Best Fit. Is Prestige Worth Being in the Bottom Half?

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Reply to "Top School vs. Best Fit. Is Prestige Worth Being in the Bottom Half?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]At places like top 10, half the class is going to be below the median, 25% of the class will be below top 75 percentile. That’s just how it works.

I get it that you’re still surrounded by smart people, big-name professors, and strong recruiting pipelines. But does that actually translate into good outcomes for students in the bottom half or bottom quartiel? Are they still landing solid jobs and grad school placements?

On the flip side, what if you went to a slightly less selective school and ended up in the top 10–20%? You might get more leadership roles, closer relationships with professors, stronger recommendation letters, and maybe just more confidence overall. Does standing out more beat having a big brand name on your resume?

How people think about this tradeoff. Is prestige worth it even if you’re below average there? Or is it smarter to pick the place where you’re more likely to shine?

Would love to hear from people who’ve actually seen this play out.[/quote]

The bottom quartile at ivy+ schools is athletes and hooked students. If you are unhooked it is highly unlikely you will end up that low unless you burn out or have significant issues. 
Below average but not bottom quartile GPA (3.5-3.70) at DC's ivy gets one into law and medical school and get hired various places. They are not top law or med but they get in with more frequency than the national-average tables for that GPA indicate. Of course, much of that is due to "below average" students at these schools having LSAT of 161-162 or MCAT of 513, both good enough for top 20-30 law and top 50-75 MD programs per the data from the ivy. 
Ivies have tables, as do top LACs and other elites.

TLDR: bottom half is just fine if the undergrad is elite. [/quote]

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