The longer I continue to preach that brand-name schools don’t offer inherently better educations or experiences, that what you do in college will be more important than where you do it, the less likely I am to debate the point with someone who doesn’t agree. Emotional, anecdotal, even statistical evidence doesn’t change minds on this topic. It’s the working example of confirmation bias, maybe for me as much as it is for them.
Parke Muth, a current admissions consultant and former associate dean of admission at the University of Virginia, just posted what I thought was a thoughtful, balanced answer to the question, “Does attending an Ivy League school really matter?” His post looks at the merits and holes in both sides of the argument. And even if you’re in the pro-prestige camp, you’d be well-served to embrace his conclusion below, as just about every knowledgeable counselor and admissions officer would agree that you’re a lot less likely to get into an Ivy League school if you’re applying based only on the name.
“For students, the choice of a school, as I have said again and again to families and students, should be about fit, not about name. A student wants to go to a place full of confidence and a desire to squeeze everything out of the time spent on campus. Students who do this will, for the most part, experience tremendous growth, a great deal of success, and, perhaps, a lot less stress.”