Originally posted by NotInRHouse:
Not to pick on Drexel, but what elite network are they apart of?
I went to Fordham for law school, which is their most prestigious school. And really, I wouldn't say its' part of an elite network. May it was before 2007, and then after, the alums would come back and not hire anyone. My guess is that's not terribly different from most of the schools on that list. And I really don't think the undergrad has a prestigious network, considering that up until 10-20 years ago, the school was more prestigious St. John's with commuters from Bronx. One of the guys who hired me out of law school did have a Fordham law degree- but then my next job, a RU alum hired me...so not sure there's a difference.
There are elite schools on that list, Ivies, Duke, Stanford, JHU- where that is the case. Are people falling all over themselves for Oberlin grads? (Insert Girls reference here). Or Connecticut College?
Joe Schmo employer in any major city would just as impressed by RU, I think, as probably half that list, as would a lot of other colleges for the half the price in states where the applicants come from.
I wasn't speaking specifically about every school (that's why I said "many") in this list but more to the comments about why do people (particularly in the Northeast) send their kids to expensive schools when they could send them to RU or another public university. My point is it's not all about academics or getting hired somewhere.
And it's not some mystical alumni network that gets you hired that I'm talking about. The people I'm talking about, for the most part, already have their network in place. They don't need the school to open doors - rather it merely helps further cement their standing within those networks/communities.
It's the parents that send their kids to the Peddie School, whatever Country Day School, etc, that are then sending their kids to places like Williams, Bucknell, Bates, Skidmore, etc... Or those that choose the select public high schools that carry certain cache because of the wealth of those neighborhoods. There is a very real class structure that people want to maintain and/or be a part of - that doesn't mean everyone at those schools fits into this category but it is very real.
And you may dismiss Connecticut College but it's historically been considered one of the "Little Ivies". That may mean nothing to you but to a segment of the northeastern wealthy it does mean something. Just like attending Jesuit schools like BC, Fairfield, Fordham, etc also are particularly attractive to a certain group of people and carry more weight in their communities than it might in yours.
A big part of my job is building relationships with individuals and understanding people and one of the things (one of many) that I have learned to take note of is where do their kids go to school. Because that often speaks a lot about their social/peer circles or their upbringing. It's not a universal truth with everyone but there are very real generalizations.
I've met plenty of public school grads who valued their degree and now find themselves (partly because of that education) in a much better place but would never consider sending their kid to public school. And again I'm not making judgments on anyone's decisions or preferences just commenting on why someone might choose to pay twice the price or more to attend private schools.
All this is also not even addressing the point that very few people at any of these schools will ever pay $60k - the sticker price (when it's that high) is rarely the real cost to anyone.
This post was edited on 7/11 4:56 PM by Scarlet Pride
