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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]State land-grant grad here. It never occurred to me to apply to HYP types, nor have any of my kids shown any interest. Is this a class divide? Regional? (I grew up in the Midwest) Is it a financial thing, where making the highest salary possible is the goal? I know this is a stupid question, but I enjoy learning what makes people tick, and this baffles me.[/quote]

People want to climb a rung on the American Caste system. It's not really that hard. [/quote]

But it IS hard for many people in the country to understand why working yourself to death to make $300k per year makes sense, when they have pretty much everything they ever wanted on an income of $100k per year.

They just don’t get why it’s better to have 30 pairs of shoes than 10 pairs. Or why a $5k watch is better than a $200 watch. Or why a degree from Yale is worth all the fuss when Iowa State is just fine and a lot more fun. [/quote]

Such a strange way of thinking.  I know plenty of kids at state schools who have eyes on Wall Street, tech, etc. and are aiming for something well north of $100k (honestly, well north of $300k too).

I guess you are also lumping UCs, Michigan, etc. into your definition of Selective Colleges?[/quote]

I’m not lumping anything together. There are people who can’t get enough money everywhere & people who think more isn’t necessarily better everywhere.

But I’d agree with the OP’s suspicion that there are geographical trends, most starkly Midwest vs Northeast.

It’s “strange” to you that some people might not fall for the “more is better” approach? That they are content with 10 pairs of shoes and a $200 watch? I can see it being “unusual,” but strange?

The OP gets why people want to go to college & have nice things. The main thrust of his various questions seems to be why they keep churning well past the point where the the diminishing returns principle kicks in.

He’s asking this in the context of elite colleges—why the overkill on institutional excellence? Why do some people think their 18 year old needs Nobel laureates to teach him in undergrad econ classes? Not such a strange question; in my lifetime I’ve heard people question wretched excess in other contexts: why does Sinatra have to keep singing or why did Willie Mays keep playing? Why do Biden & Pelosi keep shuffling along? Whether it’s money or fame or power or college prestige, the OP is wondering what’s going on in people’s heads that they can’t be content with what they have, when what they have is way more than adequate?

[/quote]

You can work any number of trades and make $100k.  So why go to college at all?  Go to CC and become an electrician or plumber for that matter.[/quote]

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