Mine turned down 2 ivies for a top 20 and doesn’t regret it.

Anonymous wrote:It really depends.

Harvard, Yale, Stanford - would be 100% pick
Princeton - only if they are OK with very intense
Columbia- only if they thrive in urban environments
Dartmouth - just no, would choose anything T50 over this one
Brown- maybe depending on the kid, better for an artsy or humanities type kid
Penn - wouldn’t necessarily choose it over another T20 but nothing objectionable about it
Cornell- only if kid likes intense winters, intense academics

DS got into both Princeton and Yale for Engineering. Is it really a grind at Princeton? I know it's more rigorous but had thought it had calmed from grade deflation days of the past.

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Anonymous wrote:Northwestern is ranked higher than several Ivies - Dartmouth, Columbia, Cornell. But push comes to shove, I think most students would choose the Ivy.

I understand Columbia over Northwestern but nobody is picking Cornell or Dartmouth over it - only the people desperate to say they go to “an Ivy.”

Those who prefer to be in NYC, yes to Columbia. But Northwestern is the clear choice vs. Brown, Dartmouth and Cornell.

Yes, maybe to those of you writing from your house in Loudoun County. But try to realize that there is an entire class of people out there that don't make admissions decisions based on the latest iteration of US News.

I live in Manhattan, sent both my kids to “elite” prep schools, and would pick Chicago & Northwestern over Cornell, Dartmouth, and Chicago over Brown. This isn’t because of whatever list USNWR has created, and it’s weird you assume people from the suburbs default to USNWR while people in cities think Ivies reign supreme. Many of my kids’ friends picked USNWR T10s over Ivies; the Ivy label of the so-called “lower Ivies” doesn’t hold up against those schools in a head-to-head.

Northwestern and Chicago heavily rely on ed, are not transparent about their data, and are test optional

No, it’s not crazy and it’s also not crazy to choose the ivy over the non-ivy.

Anonymous wrote:It really depends on the school.

My nephew was admitted to both MIT and Harvard, and he chose MIT. He has friends who also turned down Ivies for MIT.

My kid turned down MIT for Middlebury

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Anonymous wrote:Northwestern is ranked higher than several Ivies - Dartmouth, Columbia, Cornell. But push comes to shove, I think most students would choose the Ivy.

I understand Columbia over Northwestern but nobody is picking Cornell or Dartmouth over it - only the people desperate to say they go to “an Ivy.”

Those who prefer to be in NYC, yes to Columbia. But Northwestern is the clear choice vs. Brown, Dartmouth and Cornell.

Yes, maybe to those of you writing from your house in Loudoun County. But try to realize that there is an entire class of people out there that don't make admissions decisions based on the latest iteration of US News.

I live in Manhattan, sent both my kids to “elite” prep schools, and would pick Chicago & Northwestern over Cornell, Dartmouth, and Chicago over Brown. This isn’t because of whatever list USNWR has created, and it’s weird you assume people from the suburbs default to USNWR while people in cities think Ivies reign supreme. Many of my kids’ friends picked USNWR T10s over Ivies; the Ivy label of the so-called “lower Ivies” doesn’t hold up against those schools in a head-to-head.

Utter nonsense but if you want to get caught up in that stuff you can take comfort in knowing that there are 4 NESCAC schools which are better than any of the schools being discussed.

My DD chose Swarthmore over Brown. In the end, she really liked the idea of a smaller, undergraduate-focused school (although I think she would have chosen the other Ivy she applied to—Yale—over Swat, but she was waitlisted there).

Anonymous wrote:It really depends on the school.

My nephew was admitted to both MIT and Harvard, and he chose MIT. He has friends who also turned down Ivies for MIT.

For tech, Stanford and MIT beat any Ivy.

It really depends on the school.

My nephew was admitted to both MIT and Harvard, and he chose MIT. He has friends who also turned down Ivies for MIT.

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Anonymous wrote:DC is facing such a choice. The non-ivy is their first choice and a better fit. But it’s just difficult to ignore the prestige of an ivy.

Your DC should prioritize her best fit and her choice, not anyone else's. And people turn down highly ranked or well hyped schools every day because another school fits them more. It's normal to do that and not just go by some generic ranking or pecking order.

Congrats to your DC on getting into her 1st choice!

My DC is doing it (not with an ivy though). Chose BC over Georgetown. I'm happy about it!

Georgetown in rejoicing - it's no place for MAGA spawn.

All done with your No Kings event I see.

Someone has to fix this mess that you created.

Without any doubt, for engineering, schools like MIT/CMU/Stanford/Berkeley are way, way better than any ivy.

Many Ivy grads will fare no better in life than non-Ivy grads, yet they will hold on to that Ivy status like a string of pearls. If you need Ivy status to define you, you need to do some thinking. Also, depending on where you spend the rest of your life, an Ivy degree doesn’t always lead to the best results. College attendance and graduate employment is very regional, even at the top schools.

Holy beejusuz what is this thread?
My DS is at Dartmouth, and it's perfect for him.
As are his friends' schools for them - bc they've in most cases ended up at the colleges that are the best fit for them. And because they are resilient and flexible.

When the zombie apocalypse come for us (or more realistically, the AI apocalypse), those of you who spent your cycles arguing about "x school is better than y school" are gonna find yourself on the wrong side of what the world will need.

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Anonymous wrote:Northwestern is ranked higher than several Ivies - Dartmouth, Columbia, Cornell. But push comes to shove, I think most students would choose the Ivy.

I understand Columbia over Northwestern but nobody is picking Cornell or Dartmouth over it - only the people desperate to say they go to “an Ivy.”

Those who prefer to be in NYC, yes to Columbia. But Northwestern is the clear choice vs. Brown, Dartmouth and Cornell.

Yes, maybe to those of you writing from your house in Loudoun County. But try to realize that there is an entire class of people out there that don't make admissions decisions based on the latest iteration of US News.

I live in Manhattan, sent both my kids to “elite” prep schools, and would pick Chicago & Northwestern over Cornell, Dartmouth, and Chicago over Brown. This isn’t because of whatever list USNWR has created, and it’s weird you assume people from the suburbs default to USNWR while people in cities think Ivies reign supreme. Many of my kids’ friends picked USNWR T10s over Ivies; the Ivy label of the so-called “lower Ivies” doesn’t hold up against those schools in a head-to-head.

100%. Also not from Loudoun County, but echo the above. “Lower Ivies” pale in comparison to JHU, Northwestern. UChicago etc. Perhaps getting out of DC would offer some perspective?

No, different poster and you're the one who needs to get out of your VA subdivision.

Like clockwork, after their kids were shut out of the T20 the public school striver moms start to bash Chicago. Pathetic