ConfucianNemisis

"I wasn't, I was using a more extreme comparison to show why misrepresentation hurts the system."

Apples and Oranges. SUNY has nothing to do with Columbia. Barnard is attached at the hip to Columbia. The whole nearly-full open cross-registration thing is also a big difference.

"It isn't a case of insecurity, I'm proud that I go to Columbia I see the degree as valuable, but misrepresentation is unnecessary and more people claiming to go to "one of Columbia's undergraduate schools" does dilute the value in saying that. Shades of gray again."

Does it? Why? I dispute your conclusion.

"When people work hard to get in and to do well at Columbia"

Two VERY different things. People are obsessed with getting in, and give it way too much weight.

"The Barnard candidate could get the interview in the first place over a more deserving Columbia student."

So you've stated that the only time this whole thing is an issue is right out of college or for internships, when the employer already knows the difference. But then you fall back on conjuring the exact same scary specter that I said people create- do you have proof that this actually happens? How often do you think this actually happens? And just what makes the Columbia student more "deserving"?

You make two huge assumptions in this scenario - that school brand counts for an overwhelming amount, and second, and more importantly, that Columbia counts for significantly more than Barnard (among a group of employers whom you say understand the relationship between the schools). On what basis are you making this assumption?

acinva- because the relationship to Columbia is a defining characteristic of Barnard. Access to Columbia's resources, faculty, course catalog, labs etc. Also, your example is the reverse. There's no reason for a Columbia grad to explain what Barnard is. That's why there's an entire page on Barnard's website that explains the relationship (quite well actually), and Barnard barely gets mentioned on Columbia's website.