the ivy league forums on CC

[sartre fanatic]

i dont know if this is the right place to inquire (im actually pretty sure its not), but i was wondering about the formatting of the ivy league forums.

on the main cc site, there is a section for dealing with standardized tests, and then a forum for discussing all tests and then speocfic forums for sat, satiis, act and ap. does anyone else think it would be helpful to have a general ivy league forum under the simple list of schools to discuss issues that apply to all of the schools? it might help cut down on the "what are my chances at cornell" posts in the dartmouth thread. but i dont even know who moderates these.

anyone?

[jags861]

i think its stupid that there is an ivy league forum to begin with.

why isn't there an ACC forum, or a Pac10 forum.

or a forum that says "why do we think all these schools are the 8 best schools in the world because they happen to be in the same athletic conference."

[priceless28]

i think its stupid that there is an ivy league forum to begin with.

ditto. The ivies should go in top universities. The posts about Cornell in the Dartmouth forum should just be moved, no need to make another section. This site has too many subforums already.

[the_prestige]

i think its stupid that there is an ivy league forum to begin with.

You are either kidding yourselves or are in denial. Interest in the Ivies is a critical driver for CC. People come from around the world to discuss and inquire about the Ivies - whether you want to acknowledge this simple fact or not.

Don't believe me? The numbers speak plainly for themselves. Take a look at the current number of total posts for the Eight schools of the Ivy League:
409,000+ posts.

Now take a look at the number of collective posts for every other non-Ivy university / college in the US:
668,000+ posts.

Basically, a simple "back of the envelope" calculation boils down to this: for every 10 posts in either the Ivy vs. Non-Ivy forums, roughly 4 of them are about the Ivies: 40%!!! - we are talking about 8 schools out of an OCEAN of schools out there in the US. That's undeniable market power plain and simple. So either this is a very strange and unexplainable phenomenon, or there just happens to be a disproportionate interest in the Ivies.

Also, take a quick gander at some of the advertising on this site: "Ivy admissions" "Ivy this and Ivy that" - remember that ads are positioned to strike your target market - and if this is the case, why is there so much advertising about the Ivies? Answer: is simple - because there is a disproportionate (certainly disproportionate to the number of Ivy schools vs. any other) interest in the Ivies - plain and simple.

So, while you may have your own issues with the Ivies, don't delude yourself into thinking that discussion of the Ivies (in all of its forms - whether to discuss the Ivies specifically, to compare and contrast Ivies, to bash the Ivies, etc.) - that this topic is not a major driver of interest and growth for CC.

[bmanbs2]

Stanford is better than alot of the Ivies, why can't it be in the same group?

[hotpiece101]

Stanford is better than alot of the Ivies, why can't it be in the same group?

because it's not an ivy...

[bmanbs2]

I'm assuming CC isn't putting them in the same group because their in the same athletic onference

[kk19131]

"we are talking about 8 schools out of an OCEAN of schools out there in the US. That's undeniable market power plain and simple."

-True, but the Ivy League is more a philosophy or brand name than anything.

[bmanbs2]

But really, why shouldn't say, Harvard, try to join the ACC or Big East? It would only help the school.

[kk19131]

?????????????????

[bmanbs2]

Why not? Stanford benefits from being in the Pac-10. Mainstream america wouldn't know of duke if they wern't in the ACC. Imagine how many more people would apply to Harvard if it went to the final four? And the best way for that to happen is to join a big conference, or at least offer scholarships

[Cincinnatistudent]

You can't really compare the # of posts, because the ivy leage forum is easy accessible and advertised in a way that no other university forums are.

[kk19131]

"Mainstream america wouldn't know of duke if they wern't in the ACC."

-Duke’s football program is terrible. Its basketball program is great. I’m sure people recognize this more than the fact that it’s in the ACC…

[the_prestige]

True, but the Ivy League is more a philosophy or brand name than anything.

Call it what you want. Mystique, brand, whatever it is - it's as real as anything. BTW, don't underestimate the power of "brand". For instance, the world's strongest, most recognized brand in the world is "Coke". Here is the power of that brand: the second most recognized English word in the ENTIRE WORLD is Coke or Coca-Cola (no. 1 is "Ok"). If Coca-Cola went broke today and suddenly lost every single asset that they owned overnight, they could walk into any bank in the world and get a massive working capital loan purely based off of its brand alone and nothing else "tangible". That shows you that brands can be "the real thing" (pun intended).

You can't really compare the # of posts, because the ivy leage forum is easy accessible and advertised in a way that no other university forums are.

Of course you can. Even if the Ivy League forum was 10 clicks away, people would still get to it - conversely, even if you had any other group of colleges on the front page - that doesn't change the fact that a disproportionate amount of clicks would still find its way to the Ivies.

And let's think about "accessibility" for a second. CC is only catering to its readers / viewers / audience. It's simple matter of product placement. When you walk into a car dealership - the flagship cars sit right out on the sales floor - they aren't way in the back. Similarly, the Ivy forum is readily accessible on the front of CC because CC knows that a disproportionate amount of interest will be headed in that direction.

[bmanbs2]

How would Duke's basketball program be if it was in the Ivy League?