> Do everything you can to get accepted into the very best university possible. It's in your power if you work hard and love what you do (for me, it was coding

> Do everything you can to get accepted into the very best university possible. It's in your power if you work hard and love what you do (for me, it was coding for fun). "Failure" here would mean attending a Top 20 university instead of a Top 10 (while largely reaping the very same benefits). I agree with the general sentiment, but I think it's worth adding in a couple of caveats. The demand to get into a top university in the US is so high that even if you meet all of the prerequisites, getting accepted into Tier 1 university relies on an uncomfortable and ever growing amount of luck. What people forget is that this dynamic is driven by growing demand, and that an increasing number of qualified applicants are being pushed into lower tier universities. While this isn't an absolute guarantee that the overall quality, and marketability, of these universities will increase, this is, in fact, what has been happening. So yes, work hard, but don't set your goal on achieving a target that is driven as much by random chance as it is by your own effort.