Pizzagirl

Rice, Pomona and Vanderbilt are absolutely prestigious. Why would you think otherwise?

ag54

My son was a valedictorian and "settled" for UT (haha just kidding, he didn't apply to any other school but UT!). He has absolutely LOVED it there, has gotten accepted into their extremely prestigious Integrated MPA program (#1 in the country - higher than any ivies including Wharton at Penn) and wouldn't trade the college experience he's had for anything in the world!

To each his own!

poetgrl

Maybe, just maybe, these kids really ARE the smartest kids in the class, and maybe, just maybe, they really DO understand the value of making a considered choice. For example, time and again it is shown that more academically skilled students, high iq kids, etc....take more time reading a question than answering a question. Maybe they've read the question long enough to come up with the right answer. I could be wrong though. I did my undergrad at a state U.

chaosakita

Whoops, I made a mistake. I meant that most of them went to non-prestigious colleges. So yes, Rice, Vanderbilt, and Pomona are all very prestigious colleges. I'm sorry that caused a lot of confusion for you guys.

Like our said, both our academic and athletic rival sent a lot more students to top universities, so I don't know why it's the case for our school.

3Point7Student

Pizzagirl, you're a parent?

LasMa

You are correct. Surely you have better things to think about.

jumpcondition

Besides location or finances, a lot of top students pick 'less prestigious' schools because they don't mind being a bigger fish in a smaller pond. You obviously have to do really well in your classes, but professors are often more accessible and research opportunities abound.

hoedown

Thousands of kids across the country "settle" in the way you describe. I don't think it's either a big mystery or a big problem. There is no rule that you must go to the most prestigious school that will admit you. Many students have a wonderful, enriching, valuable experience doing otherwise.

skateboarder

Just to provide anoter perspective

I chose a less prestigious school over a more prestigious one and I'm not entirely happy. That might change once school starts but still. Prestige is a considerable thing.

Schmaltz

The better students at 99.9% of colleges could have gotten into a "better" college than the one they are attending.

Another way of looking at it is: What % of students nationwide attend the "best" college they could have gotten into?

LazyAznBoY

The county I live in is in the top 20 of the country in median household income and the part I live in is considered the most affluent part, yet many really smart kids turned down more prestigious schools also, mostly for financial reasons as well. A few turned down schools like UChicago/Northwestern for my state's university for financial reasons. The guy who is probably the smartest decided to go out of state to UT-Austin over schools like Duke/Rice. There are only about 4 kids going to big name schools.

Really though saving a lot of money during undergrad years for grad school actually makes a lot of sense. There is nothing wrong with less prestigious schools either. Many have honors programs and decent faculty.

Grcxx3

There are many reasons a person may choose NOT to go to what some consider the "prestigious" schools. Just because you can get into one of those schools doesn't mean it's the right school for you.

deprofundis

As skateboarder says, prestige is a considerable thing. I wanted to study English at college; it was suggested to me that if I chose to do history, I had a chance of getting in to Oxford. I have a bad memory, and was crazy about poetry, so I said no. In the end, I got in to Oxford to study English, and I am still passionately engaged with poetry and fiction. That bit would have happened anywhere - I got interested in T.S. Eliot in suburban Manchester.

Anyway, it's what happens after that that is interesting. Going to a place like Oxford stretches you; you meet people intellectually beyond you; you try to understand what at first seems impossible to grasp, and eventually, you get a little further. In the process, you gain confidence. The confidence, the knowledge at your back that you went somewhere like that, tried your best at a place as stimulating as that, stays with you your life long.

Other people might accord you more respect because you go to Harvard, Yale, Oxford, whatnot. They often do, and it is nice. But that's not what I am talking about. It gives you something far beyond that.

ring_of_fire

I agree with the above poster. Putting finances aside, would you rather go to UT Austin or Stanford? It's not even a comparison. You're selling yourself short by going to a "lesser" school and not fulfilling your academic potential.

IBclass06

According to UCLA's CIRP survey, last year 17.1% of students accepted to their first choice college turned it down for a lower-ranked school.

77.8% of students were admitted to their first choice, and 60.1% chose to attend.

I can almost guarantee that it will. It's common to feel twinges of regret as a senior, but I highly doubt you'll spare a thought for your other choice after you've been at Tufts for a while.

You'll find that prestige isn't what makes a college kid happy.