It didn’t ignore anything as I specifically stated that Williams has a great reputation among academics:
So, your point is verifiably false. As far as what the average American or small business owner thinks, that’s quite on target because, believe it or not, not every 17-year-old who intends to go to grad school for public policy ends up going to grad school for public policy. What the student wants to accomplish at age 17 shouldn’t be the only relevant point of discussion. She might also end up back home, an hour from San Francisco interviewing on Main Street where the Berkeley brand carries more weight with more people than does the Williams brand. It matters.
Most of the advice in the thread, while fine, seems to deal exclusively with best-case, which isn’t how life usually works. I look at “have you considered the more limited social bonds you will form basically going to school at Cal for two years instead of four years somewhere else?” or “does Williams really open the same doors as the others if you don’t go to graduate school or travel in an elite professional/academic niche?” to be important considerations. Plan Bs and contingencies matter, despite most in College Confidential subscribing to the Comprehensive Cradle-to-Grave Life Plan™ method of parenting.