91–100 of 383 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
[flagged]
> at the expense of whom, exactly? Everyone they step on along the way.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> at the expense of whom, exactly? Everyone they step on along the way.
[flagged]
As an Oxford alumni, I would personally focus on this more: "But Oxford wasn’t like that. The teaching was personalised, flexible and interactive. That kind of system keeps people like me in the room, fired up and engaged. Kids like me, who don’t flourish in school, can benefit from such attention, and focus, and belief. A good society would strive to give it to them." Oxford provides an amazing environment if you ge…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Also comp educated and went to Oxford. I feel like in the last 5 years or so it's become "uncool" to be posh. Feel like this has been instigated by (in the West) Brexit and Trump bringing the Establishment down a notch.
When has it ever been cool to be posh?
After couple of years, now I can see through the BS and the whole high self-esteem culture behind it. North America is a very unique culture where having a (often unrealistic) high opinion about oneself is seen as virtue. Immigrants like me, who are not familar with North American cultural schtick, can easily fall for the whole high self-esteem ruse.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think you may have a misunderstanding of how the US education system works. There are lots of scholarships and financial aid opportunities accessible for students that need them. Most “Elite State Schools” also have some kind of programs that give preference to bright students from their own state. E.g. University of Texas gives an automatic admission to the top 7% of Texas high school graduates. In state tuition i…
Surprisingly, Texas is a real outlier here. Most states have some last resort college you can attend, but it's usually a community college, or AS degree institution. UT Austin is a really good school from what I hear.
Or did, at least.
It's true that both of these policies are outliers on a per-state basis, but when you consider population, somewhat less so.
While everyone is smart and pleasant, there is the constant reinforcement that Oxbridge grads seek each other out throughout their lives to almost exclusively hang out with each other. I mean, as towns they're not exactly next door, but in London there is the joint Oxford and Cambridge club on Pall Mall so they can carry on as they were. They're often hopelessly insular in this regard and I have never quite understood it. Why your university would provide such a strong identity for yourself all your life, I don't get.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Cambridge And Oxford and a few other “elite” unis don’t allow students to work during the school year afaik, this alone filters many students but “ironically” not the poorest ones which may be eligible for a full tuition cover + stipend. Low income families above the low income limit set by the government who cannot afford tuition + covering living expenses tend to be those who can’t really afford to attend those sch…
That's not only a side effect, but a stated principle: After you gain admission, you have to prove that you have the money you need to sustain yourself either through a scholarship, or you have to literally show a bank statement that shows that you have a lump sum in your account that will sustain you for the normal amount of time it takes to finish the degree. Living expenses are factored into this at a set rate. Yo…
Sorry for the completely OT reply, but this triggered me because it is exactly how banks in Thailand do lending to build a house. Once all the details and total cost are known, the bank lends about half of the needed amount and then checks on your progress. If you didn't get about half the house built they don't fund the remainder.
I went to school in Seattle and had a Singaporean trustfund baby friend who always reiterated “everyone deserves to get a masters degree”. She would constantly fly to different cities every weekend on her own (parent’s) dime to volunteer for this non profit org called AIESEC. “Everyone deserves to travel.” To this day, I still don’t understand what this org does and it sounded like a cult or some kind of pyramid sche…