When I was looking for colleges as a teenager, I wasn't thinking about jobs at all. I was thinking about the chance to sit in rooms with the brightest people I could find (both professors and students) and learn as much as I could about the stuff that interested me.

I ended up at a "top" college, and that's what I got there. It hasn't made me more employable, but those four years have shaped who I am outside of work significantly.

I didn't come from a "top college" background. My mom has a degree from a non-selective college that she only earned after flunking out of a state school, my dad went to night school in his 30s after working manual labor jobs during his 20s. I went to a very average public high school. I work a job where I am the only person with an academic background like that. My time in college is the aberration in the grand scheme of my life, but I'm really glad I made the choice I made.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, no one is getting jobs now…

No. Only top school students are getting the good jobs. The unemployment rate for ivies is much lower than for T30s, and the salary of first job has stayed roughly the same or slight drop at ivy/stanford while it is down at T30 and below.
Companies are going to their target schools for job hires more than ever. School reputation and rigor is more important than ever.

Data for this please. Or are you pulling it out of your a$$?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I keep reading that where you go to college doesn’t matter for jobs. If that’s the case why would anyone bend over backwards to get into a good college?

Maybe because they want an amazing education with great professors and fellow students. You think college is only about getting a good job? Are you first gen or something?

Obviously, but they don’t know what they don’t know.

Sitting on a trust fund ok, otherwise amazing education for 400k is questionable. First gen is also ok but we see how they are judged here. Treat carefully.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I keep reading that where you go to college doesn’t matter for jobs. If that’s the case why would anyone bend over backwards to get into a good college?

Maybe because they want an amazing education with great professors and fellow students. You think college is only about getting a good job? Are you first gen or something?

Obviously, but they don’t know what they don’t know.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean because it's complicated. The high ranked schools can get you the prestige and connections. However, they aren't guaranteed by any means, you have to be in the right places, perform in class/lab/internships and then make the connections.

It also depends on your field. There are some people who are more old school and will only look at people from certain school (law, business, finance you can find people like that).

One of the oldest stories I ever heard was Justice Scalia talking about the best law clerk he'd had was one he inherited from another judge, but then Scalia said he never would have hired the guy because he went to Ohio State and he only takes clerks from Harvard and Yale.

But also those connections do exist at other schools? Sure. And they matter much less in certain fields.

Harvard or Yale Law. Not undergrad. Big difference. Law is an entirely different thing.

Oh I know, it's just funny that Scalia in one breath admitted the Ohio State lawyer was his best clerk and the in the next said he never would hire someone like him. It really illustrates the odd attitude some people have.

Now to be clear, I think that's a very very limited pool of organizations and maybe not ones you'd want to aspire to.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I keep reading that where you go to college doesn’t matter for jobs. If that’s the case why would anyone bend over backwards to get into a good college?

For the peer challenge, for one reason.

Second, for the ivy+ schools (ivies stanford MIT Duke Chicago) it has been shown that attending increases the chances for the top levels of certain career paths, ie topmost med schools, top law, top consulting, quantitative finance.

The next set of schools were not studied specifically but likely provide a next-best boost (WAS, JHU, Northwestern, WashU, Rice, UCB, CMU, 4-5 more)

It matters.

This is great. The next set “we’re not studied” but “likely” provide a “boost” so the conclusion that “it matters” is supported with no actual evidence.

Anonymous wrote:I mean because it's complicated. The high ranked schools can get you the prestige and connections. However, they aren't guaranteed by any means, you have to be in the right places, perform in class/lab/internships and then make the connections.

It also depends on your field. There are some people who are more old school and will only look at people from certain school (law, business, finance you can find people like that).

One of the oldest stories I ever heard was Justice Scalia talking about the best law clerk he'd had was one he inherited from another judge, but then Scalia said he never would have hired the guy because he went to Ohio State and he only takes clerks from Harvard and Yale.

But also those connections do exist at other schools? Sure. And they matter much less in certain fields.

Harvard or Yale Law. Not undergrad. Big difference. Law is an entirely different thing.

You go to the fancy college so you can wear the t-shirt and impress your friends with your disdain for the school.

Anonymous wrote:I mean because it's complicated. The high ranked schools can get you the prestige and connections. However, they aren't guaranteed by any means, you have to be in the right places, perform in class/lab/internships and then make the connections.

It also depends on your field. There are some people who are more old school and will only look at people from certain school (law, business, finance you can find people like that).

One of the oldest stories I ever heard was Justice Scalia talking about the best law clerk he'd had was one he inherited from another judge, but then Scalia said he never would have hired the guy because he went to Ohio State and he only takes clerks from Harvard and Yale.

But also those connections do exist at other schools? Sure. And they matter much less in certain fields.

sure, but it is a different world out there and those opportunities you point out are really available from a broader range of institutions. Don’t buy that old hype.

There are different reasons for different demographics

For what it's worth the top school I got into also gave me the best financial aid. My Dad made pretty good money on paper but in the last year he'd been diagnosed with cancer and our financial situation had changed significantly.

When I filed appeals and documentation with the other schools, I got nowhere, except with Northwestern, which gave me a need based grant and made it work.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well, no one is getting jobs now…

No. Only top school students are getting the good jobs. The unemployment rate for ivies is much lower than for T30s, and the salary of first job has stayed roughly the same or slight drop at ivy/stanford while it is down at T30 and below.
Companies are going to their target schools for job hires more than ever. School reputation and rigor is more important than ever.

Terribly misinformed. Is that what you "heard"?

One reason to aim for T20 is that some kids feed off of the motivation/energy of the kids around them.

DD went T20 and is surrounded by bright, motivated kids like her who study hard but also enjoy their lives outside of their studies. This was the vibe we were hoping for, and she is really happy.

Anonymous wrote:Well, no one is getting jobs now…

No. Only top school students are getting the good jobs. The unemployment rate for ivies is much lower than for T30s, and the salary of first job has stayed roughly the same or slight drop at ivy/stanford while it is down at T30 and below.
Companies are going to their target schools for job hires more than ever. School reputation and rigor is more important than ever.

To demonstrate that they aren’t a dumbass like most of the posters on this board.