I don't think the quality of the lecturers matters that much. It's all about the students for me: good students create an environment and expectations that driv

I don't think the quality of the lecturers matters that much. It's all about the students for me: good students create an environment and expectations that drive the whole thing. An excellent teacher isn't going to drag average students to amazing, but conversely a decidedly average teacher will not make amazing students average. Also, I am not convinced your average Nobel laureates is a particularly good teacher. If anything, from experience, research focused professors often see teaching as a chore and it has a clear impact on the quality of their teaching. If we're talking about teaching calculus 101, I'd much rather have a no-name professor who is a good pedagogue and loves teaching than a Fields medal winner. Of course, in reality, the fact you were taught by $famous professor is probably more valuable than what you actually learned in the class.