Anonymous wrote:Nice gyms always seem to be a good investment for colleges. At every college I've ever attended or visited, the gym was always bustling with students even when the rest of campus was quiet. But I don't think gym quality always equates to how fancy a school is. I've seen far nicer gyms at large public universities than I have at the few NESCAC and Ivy schools I've visited.

Agree. The gyms at the state flagship where I went to grad school were FAR nicer than the gyms at my undergrad (HYP).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does she
Have an advisor who will proactively review her course selections, ensure she on track? (Or is the advisor non existent or hard to schedule (most colleges))
Ever email a professor or advisor indicating that a class she wants at the time she wants is booked... and a space is opened up for her?
Have the opportunity to enter a bespoke mentoring program, matched with an industry professional?
Have access to bespoke international experiences (aside from the semester study abroad that everyone else has), for example winter break in hong kong, spring break in colombia?
Ever have a professor say, if you don't have an internship lined up, just email me, we will find one for you?

I went to HYP and there was nothing like this, and I think this whole list is wildly unrealistic (maybe a one-off once in awhile for a particularly beloved student, but nothing like this for 99%.)

To me “great resources” is not advising or personal services, it’s about an incredible library, amazing art collections, world famous speakers coming to give talks, professors who are top in their field, etc.

+1 from another HYP grad

+2 from another HYP grad

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does she
Have an advisor who will proactively review her course selections, ensure she on track? (Or is the advisor non existent or hard to schedule (most colleges))
Ever email a professor or advisor indicating that a class she wants at the time she wants is booked... and a space is opened up for her?
Have the opportunity to enter a bespoke mentoring program, matched with an industry professional?
Have access to bespoke international experiences (aside from the semester study abroad that everyone else has), for example winter break in hong kong, spring break in colombia?
Ever have a professor say, if you don't have an internship lined up, just email me, we will find one for you?

I went to HYP and there was nothing like this, and I think this whole list is wildly unrealistic (maybe a one-off once in awhile for a particularly beloved student, but nothing like this for 99%.)

To me “great resources” is not advising or personal services, it’s about an incredible library, amazing art collections, world famous speakers coming to give talks, professors who are top in their field, etc.

+1 from another HYP grad

Anonymous wrote:I applied for a Rhodes and a Marshall scholarship from a private college and there is definitely a group of students that get high-powered, 1:1 advising and mentoring. It's not broadly advertised or widely known, but absolutely happens. I had weekly meetings with the Provost to practice interview questions and the head of the honors program reviewed my course selections each semester. I met with members of the board of trustees and had frequent dinners at the university president's house. The school even hired an external consultant to advise me. From conversations with the other candidates (all from Ivies, unlike me), I understand that we all were prepped by our universities.

In short, not everyone gets the same treatment.

Well, were you selected?

At Rice University students can have all their laundry picked up, washed, dried, and folded all without leaving the comfort of their dorm rooms.

Anonymous wrote:OP I think this is a good question that demands some further introspection as people make these claims in 'general' terms all the time without getting into any specifics. In the past I understood it was primarily the "network" of classmates and alumni gained by attending, however that doesn't appear to be holding water these days with top corporate and public execs coming from all types of schools. Also a lot of so-called lower tiered publics have sizeable alumni networks and it appears wealthy students at the "ritzy" colleges don't interact with the middle class or Pell students. So then what makes HYPSM and other Ivy+ unique with resources? What really is the resource benefit, considering the academic backlash that is underway with places such as Harvard?

HYPSM grad here. There is no fancy shmancy secret network that we are all part of (or if there is, I somehow missed it). You go to these schools for the education. You go to be surrounded by brilliant, curious, motivated peers for 4 years, an unparalleled experience.

As for the resources, can't speak to current conditions, having graduated eons ago. But since my time there, my college built two new dorms, renovated all the existing ones, built a new student center, and the list goes on and on. They can get the best professors. They are not cutting or consolidating academic departments, like less well-off schools.

At a minimum, you get a great campus, great professors, more attentive administrators, and great financial aid.

The financial aid is all grants, not loans. Also, there are “scholarships/grants” for study abroad and about any project you want to undertake.

There is funding to keep kids on campus for jobs and research opportunities during the summer. If there are better opportunities elsewhere, students can apply for stipends to subsidize rent, airfare and other costs, especially in big cities.

The overall atmosphere is nicer. When you live and work in a great physical environment with great students, professors, and administrators, everyone is happier. There is a synergy that creates optimism and supports and encourages initiative and achievement. Everyone wants good things for each other because there are so many opportunities for everyone. This extends to alumni, who readily support the university with financial gifts, but also hire graduates.

Students get the lifelong tailwind of such bounty through their education, connections, jobs/careers, and graduate school admissions.

My kid is at HYS. When I think about resources he’s been able to access, they include some of the things already mentioned- interesting classes, exposure to cutting-edge research, a campus vibe that encourages exploration and experimentation.

But most importantly, HYS has been a “tailwind” for him. He and a friend (as juniors) wanted to teach an advanced class (not as TAs, but actually coming up with the course material, inviting guest speakers from leading companies, etc.). HYS made it happen - he got a faculty sponsor who helped navigate with the deans/provost, got the course approved, added to course catalog with the appropriate credits, etc. Every CEO/ head of engineering he called to be a guest speaker, returned his call. In his freshman year, he had an idea he wanted to vet - professors from the Law school, business school and CS department got on zoom with him over thanksgiving break to brainstorm.

None of this would have happened without his initiative and persistence. But the tailwind gave him momentum. Hard to do a true A/B to see if the same thing would have been as easy at another institution. Perhaps.

Anonymous wrote:At top universities, students are something that gets in the way of the professors’ research agenda.

This. Many professors are on campus as little as possible.

Anonymous wrote:OP I hate to break it to you but people at Princeton benefiting from the incredible resources there, do not have parent on DCUM and if they do, they don't care to share the information. That's just how it is.

One huge advantage with Princeton is if you take Toni Morrison’s writing class and she likes your work you are essentially guaranteed a book deal.

OP I hate to break it to you but people at Princeton benefiting from the incredible resources there, do not have parent on DCUM and if they do, they don't care to share the information. That's just how it is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Often you read parents touting the vast resources at the most selective colleges, funded by multi-billion endowments and pricy tuition. Nobody ever details what those resources actually are and how often they’re used.

Our DD is at a top 10 and the only resource seems to be a boundless amount of staff who email her or forward her to another staff member, who will email her or offer to jump on a zoom, to detail things they will later email her. They don’t really offer bespoke help, they just email her copy and paste text and links into emails. Is this one example of the alleged resources?

Yeah, like U of Michigan (a public!) spending $30M on 200+ DEI "specialists".

read and weep! And it's a public! https://www.jns.org/college-fix-university-of-michigan-spends-30-68-million-on-500-dei-jobs/#:~:text=According%20to%20a%20College%20Fix,fees%20for%201%2C781%20undergraduate%20students.%E2%80%9D

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids are at top 10 SLACs, and I think they have great access to the resources at their respective schools.

Define resources. More specifically the resources they personally use and which you believe are better than or unavailable at less prestigious colleges.

DP. My kid was at a T30 SLAC. Some of the resources available at T30 not available at a state university included,

- endowment that provided FA/merit aid that allowed my kid to receive world-class education for the price of a state university.

-semester abroad exchange for the same price I was paying.

- endowment that flew my student to the east coast and west coast for networking opportunities with potential employers.

- was able to transfer to a dream ivy university with full support.

- amazing ivy education, thanks to the T30 SLAC and its connection.

- after graduation, my student was pretty much allowed to sign up for a lucrative job.

What school? Sounds like Bucknell or Richmond.

I'll just leave it at T30 cuz many of the pluses and minuses of SLACs are very similar. Also fyi, resource-rich SLACs and universities are looking for go-getter students who are able to take advantage of many of these opportunities. The resources are there. Students still need to seek them out.

I got a lot of use out of the free condoms from the health center!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids are at top 10 SLACs, and I think they have great access to the resources at their respective schools.

Define resources. More specifically the resources they personally use and which you believe are better than or unavailable at less prestigious colleges.

DP. My kid was at a T30 SLAC. Some of the resources available at T30 not available at a state university included,

- endowment that provided FA/merit aid that allowed my kid to receive world-class education for the price of a state university.

-semester abroad exchange for the same price I was paying.

- endowment that flew my student to the east coast and west coast for networking opportunities with potential employers.

- was able to transfer to a dream ivy university with full support.

- amazing ivy education, thanks to the T30 SLAC and its connection.

- after graduation, my student was pretty much allowed to sign up for a lucrative job.

What school? Sounds like Bucknell or Richmond.