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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Numerous studies have shown over and over again that test scores are superior predictors of college performance and career success.[/quote]

If one measures success by reaching the c-suite or becoming an executive the largest correlation is not found in test scores but found in "did the person in question go to an elite school and play a college sport?" i.e. were they an athlete. The Chetty study is correct but opaque because they didn't isolate and write about the correct factors. [b]The increased chance for the 1% is driven by gatekeeping in IB, MBB consulting, top law, top med school. Entry to those careers (outside of medicine which is a bit wider) is largely limited to graduates from the Ivy+ schools and a small set of elite SLACs. And, within some of those careers (IB, MBB especially) athletes have big recruiting advantages.[/b]  Remove these careers from the dataset and the Ivy+ schools look like all of the other top schools which is why there is no additional bump into the top 25% but a large one into the top 1%.

In the end the path looks like this:

wealthy families -> access to organized sports (especially lax, hockey, and volleyball for women) -> recruited athlete admission to elite colleges -> elite college networks and credential -> entry into prestigious firms and graduate schools -> executive pipeline -> top 1% income

It's really not hard to see and the research backs it up.[/quote]

Bolded is not 100% wrong but heavily outdated by about 20 years.[/quote]

The thing is that it isn't.

You might wish it were different but that is still how it works. There is a bit more room for other profiles but not as much room as you want to believe there is. The difference today is that the athletes academically look very similar to the student body especially for "elite sports" and especially at the top SLACs. Having a strong profile for entry into IB and MBB at the Ivies requires membership in the right Investment clubs and consulting clubs which are very hard to get into (the mere idea that a 21 yr old club officer has any control over your career is ridiculous but that is another conversation) and not getting in really hurts your chances. Smart athletes move from the Ivies move into IB and MBB without needing the clubs. Sometimes they join them but the sports connection completely bypasses that first gate if necessary. Clubs at top SLACs are far less stressful but very helpful in the recruiting cycle but the athlete network is far tighter and again a direct path. As I said, you may not like it but this is how it works. I see it year after year.[/quote]

You really don’t see it though, or at least you see it through a very myopic lens.

There was an article from almost 10 years ago in the WSJ calling college athletes on Wall Street an endangered species. Computerizing and quanting everything has changed the make up of trading floors and banking divisions. Athletes are increasingly pushed into wealth management and private banking, a distinction which is of course not understood on DCUM.

You sound like you’ve never heard of on-campus recruiting. It’s how most of these people are getting hired these days. Clubs can help with this but they rarely monopolize it. And these days these firms recruit at large publics, privates outside of Ivy Plus, etc. [b]Not everywhere but that list is probably 30 or so schools long, not “Ivy+ schools and a small set of elite SLACs.”
[/b]
Again, a heavily out of date view.[/quote]

Thank you for actually proving the point. Ivy+ along with a small set of Elite SLACs is about 20 schools. [b]Add in NYU, Fordham, CMC, regionals like BYU, SMU, UT, USC, etc. and the top publics and you are done. [/b]There are 4000 schools in the country. On campus recruiting is critical but its not an open cattle call. On site recruiting is a huge advantage for kids at Williams, Middlebury, CMC, Amherst. Far less competition for spots, much easier to get attention at recruiting events. Resumes are screened and kids invited, if the clubs didn't matter kids wouldn't be so stressed about gaining admission.

You might think my view is out of date, but it isn't. I'm downstream form this stuff (PE on the West Coast) but I see many kids who are going through or went through including one of my own and in the end I'm pretty confident of my POV.

[/quote]

So you agree that the list is much bigger than just Ivy Plus, which on this thread very specifically means Ivies plus four schools. Great.[/quote]

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