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The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

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Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#111

Post by [deleted] »

edblarney wrote: post #96
Mz wrote: post #11

The remarks here on HN dissing this article piqued my curiosity, so I began to read the article. It's been a long ..year...and I am super tired, so I am not going to manage to actually read the whole thing. But, I was one of the top three students of my graduating high school class and I turned down a National Merit Scholarship to one of the top two universities of my home state. I think I made the right call and I t…

If you didn't know you were 'upper class' then you were definitely not, although I grasp what you are saying. 'Upper class' means generational wealth and status, your grandfather was wealthy, a diplomat, and admiral, head of a large multinational, and you can trace your lineage back at least 8 generations, and likely back to before you were even Americans ... your family has had status for that long. But yes - some p…

[deleted]

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#113

Post by [deleted] »

laichzeit0 wrote: post #105
lgessler wrote: post #51

TL;DR: Going to an elite school 1. denies you the opportunity to empathize with anyone beyond a narrow spectrum of socioeconomics and culture 2. anoints you with a sense of self-worth and entitlement that is, if earned at all, only founded on a narrow set of skills: analytic ability and hard work 3. admits you into the class of seductive "entitled mediocrity", which allows you to fail spectacularly with essentially n…

That's a great list of positive benefits. Is there a corresponding list of negatives?

[deleted]

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#115

Post by Mz »

edblarney wrote: post #96
Mz wrote: post #11

The remarks here on HN dissing this article piqued my curiosity, so I began to read the article. It's been a long ..year...and I am super tired, so I am not going to manage to actually read the whole thing. But, I was one of the top three students of my graduating high school class and I turned down a National Merit Scholarship to one of the top two universities of my home state. I think I made the right call and I t…

If you didn't know you were 'upper class' then you were definitely not, although I grasp what you are saying. 'Upper class' means generational wealth and status, your grandfather was wealthy, a diplomat, and admiral, head of a large multinational, and you can trace your lineage back at least 8 generations, and likely back to before you were even Americans ... your family has had status for that long. But yes - some p…

My mother's mother was from a low level noble family. The family sold the title. Or so I have been told.

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#116

Post by [deleted] »

dibstern wrote: post #14

These aren't the disadvantages of an elite education, it's the disadvantages of not having sufficient breadth of experiences with people from a sufficient breadth of social-economic backgrounds. Get your kids to do extracurriculars where they'll meet kids from lower-income households. It'll make them able to relate to them and understand them better.

[deleted]

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#117

Post by Cursuviam »

gragas wrote: post #110
nickonline wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Arguably it doesn't matter whether you went to Stanford or your state university, the institution where you graduated matters little in the professional world once you have that first gig.

That's exactly the point I'm trying to make. I completely agree. I want to know, how does it feel to have gone to a place like Stanford, only to end up in the same position as someone who went to a state university?

It feels like that state university grad probably worked harder than me

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#118

Post by adpoe »

I think the issue at stake here is the nature of higher education in the US: specifically, what are its putative goals?

Is it a place for intellectual growth and experience gaining for its own sake, or is it primarily for grooming & career preparation?

With tuition costs as they are, I'd argue that college is necessarily a career investment, almost entirely. And to view it any other way is either naively Romantic or somewhat deluded.

If I could really guarantee career success, social status, and great wealth, just by attending a school--I would.

If these schools really do grant entry to coveted and lucrative positions, and that's what they're selling to potential applicants, I don't see a problem. That's the product, and as products go, that's pretty darn good.

Personally, I think if elite education as entry-way to the upperclass--of and for itself--is an issue, then you're attending one of these schools for the wrong reasons.

Right now, it is often pretended that the goal of college is to learn, to grow, and to 'get an education'. This may have been true in the past, but today it is not. The goal of college is to prepare yourself for the work force, and any other view is somewhat financially irresponsible, whether your family has the money to blow, or not.

Moreover: much of the most important learning in life (intellectual and otherwise) happens outside of academia. It always has and always will. Schools can't do it all. If you aren't already intellectually curious, 4 years at Stanford--just by itself--won't change that. But if I can find a school that will be worth the investment of time and money for my career, one that will help me build a comfortable life for myself and support my family--then I think that investment is worthwhile, and I'll be happy to make it any day.

Re: The Disadvantages of an Elite Education (2008)

#120

Post by IslaDeEncanta »

laichzeit0 wrote: post #105
lgessler wrote: post #51

TL;DR: Going to an elite school 1. denies you the opportunity to empathize with anyone beyond a narrow spectrum of socioeconomics and culture 2. anoints you with a sense of self-worth and entitlement that is, if earned at all, only founded on a narrow set of skills: analytic ability and hard work 3. admits you into the class of seductive "entitled mediocrity", which allows you to fail spectacularly with essentially n…

That's a great list of positive benefits. Is there a corresponding list of negatives?

People like you are why the communists are going to win.
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