I went to one of the (if not the) top school for my program. Honestly, I came away feeling very jaded - I felt like the school only cared about itself and would

I went to one of the (if not the) top school for my program. Honestly, I came away feeling very jaded - I felt like the school only cared about itself and wouldn't think twice about you while you were there but would be sure to quickly claim you as an alum if you made something of yourself afterward. That being said, I did meet some amazing people there and it helped me get through all of the politics. There's definitely something to be said about surrounding yourself with talented people. But there are other opportunities to do so outside of the school setting. Look for a local hacker group. Go to some meetups. While these schools might provide a springboard to getting to where you want to go, they are just that - a springboard; they are probably not the end goal. There was a link posted a few months ago about the idea of everyone wanting a million dollars. The author's main point was that you don't really want the million dollars - you want what the million dollars can buy (freedom, adventure, etc). The second point was that you don't need the million dollars to achieve these things. Hang in there!