If you go to grad school nobody cares where you went to undergrad but they care a lot about research experience getting into grad school, and it’s easier to act

If you go to grad school nobody cares where you went to undergrad but they care a lot about research experience getting into grad school, and it’s easier to actually get research experience at a state school where the other students aren’t all also trying to get it. Most state schools guarantee admission to people with an in state AA degree. I went this route, and am now a tenured PI at one of the most prestigious places in the world. I had several highly cited first author pubs in good journals as an undergrad at a state school. I was also paid to do that research, which made college almost free. I’m not going to put any pressure on my kid to “prepare for college” because it simply isn’t necessary and just makes you miss out on being a teenager. The sad truth is parents think putting massive pressure on their kids will make them smarter, or more skilled at things that lead to a high paying or prestigious career. Unfortunately that’s not true… if they have the aptitude to succeed they will do so without the pressure. If the pressure makes the difference, it means a miserable life doing something they don’t really like and aren’t very good at but were forced into by their parents.