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Exactly! If I had the opportunity to go to an institution with Harvard-tier educational opportunities and reputation but no legacy admissions (merit-based only)

Exactly! If I had the opportunity to go to an institution with Harvard-tier educational opportunities and reputation but no legacy admissions (merit-based only) or one where a third of the students were children of the rich and powerful, I know which one I'd choose. (Of course, if I was one of those "children of the rich and powerful" I'd probably choose the first school - much better environment for finding opportunities to invest in. Less competition, after all)

rayiner 8y ago
> Exactly! If I had the opportunity to go to an institution with Harvard-tier educational opportunities and reputation but no legacy admissions (merit-based only) or one where a third of the students were children of the rich and powerful, I know which one I'd choose. Case in point: I went to a public selective-admission high school where the average SAT scores were comparable to an Ivy (probably 1,450 when I went, over 1,500 today). That's higher than the top private secondary schools. 15 years later, folks are mostly pretty successful (doctors, lawyers, engineers, scientists) but not exactly masters of the universe. Nothing compared to what you might see in a cohort of Andover or Exeter grads.