Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:top 25 universities, top 5 lacs. So 30 in total.

There’s a T40 SLAC that claims no less than 4 Nobel prize winners among its alums. For a school the size of an HS, this is extraordinary. One of them was Caltech’s first President, turning a provincial vocational school to what it is today. He was also Caltech’s first Nobel prize winner.

Anonymous wrote:top 25 universities, top 5 lacs. So 30 in total.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Which is funny because most people see Princeton as dead last in hypsm on DCUM or College Confidential. Don't get where that sense of superiority/entitlement comes from.

I mean…. Old money.

The WASP establishment isn't even that relevant in the 21st century anymore. As a first generation US citizen, I can comfortably say that Princeton (and to a lesser extent, Yale) has not-so-great name recognition outside the US. You would be surprised at how many people only heard of Harvard or Stanford but not other schools.

Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Which is funny because most people see Princeton as dead last in hypsm on DCUM or College Confidential. Don't get where that sense of superiority/entitlement comes from.

I mean…. Old money.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hasn't Columbia been harder to get into than Yale or Princeton for the last several years?

It has a lower acceptance rate, sure, but:
* It has early decision and fills nearly half of its class through that. Yale and Princeton don't. That's 100% yield for Columbia and enables them to admit less students later.
* Princeton has the most coveted location of any of the Ivies. You get a substantial number of under-qualified students applying simply because it's in NYC.
* Columbia gets to push students into alternative routes (Sciences Po, School of General Studies) which are not factored into acceptances. General Studies folks for all intents and purposes undergraduate Columbia students; they take the same courses as those in SEAS and the College. General Studies has a far higher acceptance rate- 33%- which is not accounted into the 5.8% acceptance rate. Yale and Princeton only offer one route into undergraduate.

Let's not kid ourselves here- Yale and Princeton are harder to get into.

+10000

*fewer

Here comes the SGS-obsessed and veteran-hating reject again!

I have a degree from Columbia, and that doesn't seem like SGS "hate" so much as a recognition that the reported Columbia admission rate does not reflect the actual composition of the students attending undergraduate classes.

Also agree with the fact that the number of applications at Columbia has been boosted by TV shows like Gossip Girl.

NYT reports there are a lot of unemployed or underemployed Columbia master’s students who majored in things like MFA. With $100,000-300,000 loans, students can end up with $30,000-50,000/yr paying jobs. NYT also did a similar investigation on USC grad school recently. Someone also did a similar investigation into Harvard.

Good luck Disgruntled PP. Your mistake in picking a not-so-lucrative major.

I’m the Columbia poster to whom you’re responding. My Columbia degree was not an MFA, we have a net worth in the eight figures, and I’m not disgruntled. Merely understand why some people point out the undergraduate environment at Columbia is impacted by the SGS students and that their inclusion in the application statistics for Columbia arguably would result in a more accurate portrayal of its relative selectivity. So squint harder the next time you decide to read between the lines.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As dumb as this thread is, I’ll share a little anecdote:

My husband’s family has a couple generations of Princeton grads, including his mother (one of the first women admits) and his father. My husband went to Yale - and rejected his Princeton admission - and it caused a huge uproar in his family, even among aunts and uncles. He was the rebel kid.

I went to Dartmouth and met DH right after undergrad. When I met his parents it was clear that I *barely* passed the “is she elite enough to marry my son” test. Like, they acted at times like I went to community college. I actually never applied to Princeton (I applied to Harvard and was rejected) and my ILs have used that at introductions at parties - “she went to Dartmouth, but the poor thing didn’t know to apply to Princeton, so we’ll never know if she would have been admitted!” I mean, heaven forbid someone in their circle thinks their son married someone who *didnt* get into Princeton.

There are people - many, many people - who look down on anything that’s not Princeton or maybe Yale. Harvard, among these folks, is widely known to accept “anyone” if they score highly enough, whereas Princeton and Yale look at overall “pedigree”. Like, Harvard is obviously for dorks and losers, not well rounded children from elite families. Stanford is in California and no one cares about California, and literally no other school is worth mentioning. Like, they are all the same. Ordinary schools for ordinary people. None - none! - are elite.

This is dumb, of course, and I absolutely hate my ILs and the circles they run in. But it puts into perspective that what is regarded as “elite” really depends ENTIRELY on your audience. I mean, there are women in this family who married Harvard grads and you should see how they’re treated - like interlopers who just barely managed to get an invitation to the ball. There’s one cousin who went to U Penn, but everyone kind of knew she was a loser, so we just are polite and don’t bring it up. I mean, all of this is so dumb, but I swear to god I’m not exaggerating in the slightest.

So you can argue on dcum about what is and isn’t elite, but to the people who see themselves as elite, I can guarantee you - you aren’t. I’m not. Almost no one is.

Which is funny because most people see Princeton as dead last in hypsm on DCUM or College Confidential. Don't get where that sense of superiority/entitlement comes from.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hasn't Columbia been harder to get into than Yale or Princeton for the last several years?

It has a lower acceptance rate, sure, but:
* It has early decision and fills nearly half of its class through that. Yale and Princeton don't. That's 100% yield for Columbia and enables them to admit less students later.
* Princeton has the most coveted location of any of the Ivies. You get a substantial number of under-qualified students applying simply because it's in NYC.
* Columbia gets to push students into alternative routes (Sciences Po, School of General Studies) which are not factored into acceptances. General Studies folks for all intents and purposes undergraduate Columbia students; they take the same courses as those in SEAS and the College. General Studies has a far higher acceptance rate- 33%- which is not accounted into the 5.8% acceptance rate. Yale and Princeton only offer one route into undergraduate.

Let's not kid ourselves here- Yale and Princeton are harder to get into.

+10000

*fewer

Here comes the SGS-obsessed and veteran-hating reject again!

I have a degree from Columbia, and that doesn't seem like SGS "hate" so much as a recognition that the reported Columbia admission rate does not reflect the actual composition of the students attending undergraduate classes.

Also agree with the fact that the number of applications at Columbia has been boosted by TV shows like Gossip Girl.

NYT reports there are a lot of unemployed or underemployed Columbia master’s students who majored in things like MFA. With $100,000-300,000 loans, students can end up with $30,000-50,000/yr paying jobs. NYT also did a similar investigation on USC grad school recently. Someone also did a similar investigation into Harvard.

Good luck Disgruntled PP. Your mistake in picking a not-so-lucrative major.

I’m the Columbia poster to whom you’re responding. My Columbia degree was not an MFA, we have a net worth in the eight figures, and I’m not disgruntled. Merely understand why some people point out the undergraduate environment at Columbia is impacted by the SGS students and that their inclusion in the application statistics for Columbia arguably would result in a more accurate portrayal of its relative selectivity. So squint harder the next time you decide to read between the lines.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hasn't Columbia been harder to get into than Yale or Princeton for the last several years?

It has a lower acceptance rate, sure, but:
* It has early decision and fills nearly half of its class through that. Yale and Princeton don't. That's 100% yield for Columbia and enables them to admit less students later.
* Princeton has the most coveted location of any of the Ivies. You get a substantial number of under-qualified students applying simply because it's in NYC.
* Columbia gets to push students into alternative routes (Sciences Po, School of General Studies) which are not factored into acceptances. General Studies folks for all intents and purposes undergraduate Columbia students; they take the same courses as those in SEAS and the College. General Studies has a far higher acceptance rate- 33%- which is not accounted into the 5.8% acceptance rate. Yale and Princeton only offer one route into undergraduate.

Let's not kid ourselves here- Yale and Princeton are harder to get into.

+10000

*fewer

Here comes the SGS-obsessed and veteran-hating reject again!

I have a degree from Columbia, and that doesn't seem like SGS "hate" so much as a recognition that the reported Columbia admission rate does not reflect the actual composition of the students attending undergraduate classes.

Also agree with the fact that the number of applications at Columbia has been boosted by TV shows like Gossip Girl.

NYT reports there are a lot of unemployed or underemployed Columbia master’s students who majored in things like MFA. With $100,000-300,000 loans, students can end up with $30,000-50,000/yr paying jobs. NYT also did a similar investigation on USC grad school recently. Someone also did a similar investigation into Harvard.

Good luck Disgruntled PP. Your mistake in picking a not-so-lucrative major.