Colleges

[Dragon314 he/him]

Did anybody on the shard attend or is attending an ivy league college? If so, what did you do in High School to get there?

[Mestiv he/him]

What's so special about them? Maybe that's a silly question, but I really don't know. 

[Left he/him]

1 hour ago, Mestiv said:

What's so special about them? Maybe that's a silly question, but I really don't know. 

They're an elite group of universities in the states that are very old, very very good, and very hard to get into. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc. They're kinda set on an academic thrown here. You have to score very well on your college admittance exams, the ACT or SAT, have had excellent grades through most of highschool, been active in school groups, clubs, government, and or athletics.
If you get into one of the schools and you're below a certain income level, they'll basically pay your tuition, which is awesome. If you're above that income level....lookout, it's expensive. I think they may be some of the most expensive schools in the states if they don't give you a need-based scholarship.

The education they'll give you will be really good, if you're able to keep up with the coursework. The programs are very competitive. I don't know that they're necessarily worse than in other universities, but they have a reputation for being challenging.

In snob circles, if you went to an ivy league school or your kids are going than you get major snob points. Which is pretty ridiculous since people can get just as good an education at other private or state schools.

22 hours ago, Dragon314 said:

Did anybody on the shard attend or is attending an ivy league college? If so, what did you do in High School to get there?

I'm going to be attending BYU, so not an ivy league school. I've talked to plenty of recruiters from Ivy League schools though, and basically they say- Get really good grades in your classes, score really well on your ACT SAT (and take them multiple times, I improved a Ton by taking my SAT several times. You learn how to take the test and it becomes much more comfortable), take AP Classes get good grades and pass the exams, become a leader in your school club, sport, gov, and try to fulfill requirements to get awarded and recognized for your work, find volunteer positions, work during the summer.

Basically, the schools want very balanced, smart students who have shown leadership and hard work. They want you to have an impressive academic record, but to also have not sacrificed everything else to have gotten that. So if all you have going for you is a 36 on the ACT, you're probably not gonna get in. You don't have to be the best at everything, but you need to be active in things other than school and take your school seriously.

[A Budgie she/her]

And what's the bet they're all in Britain/America.

[StrikerEZ he/him]

58 minutes ago, A Budgie said:

And what's the bet they're all in Britain/America.

Well, they're just in America. There are some really good colleges in Britain that are similar to the Ivy League, like Oxford or Cambridge, I think.

[Left he/him]

11 hours ago, A Budgie said:

And what's the bet they're all in Britain/America.

As StrikerEZ said, Ivy League universities are only American. They're just a club of very old prestigious schools in the states. Every country has universities with more prestige and academic standards. America, due to its larger population than the countries of Europe+Australia+Japan, and older modern education system than India or China, just has a LOT of very good universities. There are many excellent universities in other countries that will give you just as good of an education as Ivy League and Ivy League level universities in America will. 

 

I do want to point out to the original poster that while Ivy League schools are Super hyped up and prestigious, they may not be the best target to aim your heart at right now. In some cases, like if you qualify for need based scholarships, than they will be one of your most affordable options. If not, trying to go Ivy League for four straight years without any gaps for jobs to help pay will probably put you into a LOT of debt that probably isn't worth it. There are Tons of schools out there that can give you the education you need at a much lower price tag. For instance, New York State is supposed to start having all of its state colleges be tuition free to New York residents. There's a few other states that do the same. If you live in one of those, I would strongly suggest thinking about going to one of the state schools. As hard as it can be for college grads to get on their feet after college now, you have to be really strategic about what you study and where. Going Ivy League for the sake of Ivy League isn't a great idea unless you've got some seriously loaded parents. 

I hope I don't sound like I'm fussing at you or anything, but I think a lot of people aren't being very smart when they approach higher education and it annoys me. I mean, there are a lot of people who aren't getting good jobs after accumulating massive student debt, and they could be making 80K a year as a plumber easily. 

[Calderis he/him]

1 hour ago, Left said:

I hope I don't sound like I'm fussing at you or anything, but I think a lot of people aren't being very smart when they approach higher education and it annoys me. I mean, there are a lot of people who aren't getting good jobs after accumulating massive student debt, and they could be making 80K a year as a plumber easily.

This. I don't mean to offend anyone. Education is fantastic and everyone should strive to be informed, but the United States focus on the college degree has reached a point that it is detrimental to income equality. 

I work in a skilled trade (steamfitter/pipe fitter) and because of collective bargaining make more than most of my friends with degrees. 

The issue is that degrees have become so much the focus, that there are more degrees out there than job openings for those people. I regularly do piping installation at Intel's R&D facility in Hillsboro Oregon, and talking to the employees that have been there for over a decade I regularly hear about how they got their job with a high school diploma and on the job training. Those same jobs now require a bachelor's degree. They don't pay any more now, and you probably have to go into debt to get one, but there you go. 

The idea planted in American Youths brains that if you don't go to college you won't be able to get a good job was a self fulfilling prophecy that's hurt the majority of people's ability to advance financially. 

[Mestiv he/him]

2 minutes ago, Calderis said:

The idea planted in American Youths brains that if you don't go to college you won't be able to get a good job was a self fulfilling prophecy that's hurt the majority of people's ability to advance financially. 

This is true not only in Amercia. I think in Europe we have the same problem. Fortunately, here, getting a degree is usually not equal to getting a student load, as most universities are free.

[Calderis he/him]

29 minutes ago, Mestiv said:

This is true not only in Amercia. I think in Europe we have the same problem. Fortunately, here, getting a degree is usually not equal to getting a student load, as most universities are free.

It wouldn't bother quite as much if it worked that way here. But a degree here... My wife's degree for social work ran about 14k. By the time we finish paying that'll be closer to 20k.

She got into it to help people, but the fact that a field of work requires that type of work that going to pay as little as social work does...

Pay off your debt. Pay your bills. Eat. Enjoy yourself. Pick two of those and let the other two go. When I met her she was eating and paying her bills.

Edit: @Mestiv just to clarify, I'm not trying to say it's not a problem elsewhere, because it totally is. I just meant if we weren't required to go into debt, the obligation of the degree would bother me less. 

Edited June 4, 2017 by Calderis

[The Sovereign]

On 6/2/2017 at 9:36 PM, Dragon314 said:

Did anybody on the shard attend or is attending an ivy league college? If so, what did you do in High School to get there?

Almost but not quite, I went to College of the Holy Cross which has been invited to the Ivy league 4 or 5 times in the last 50 years. They are a Jesuit school though, and to join they Ivy League they would be required to drop their Jesuit affiliation and that doesn't make financial sense for them so they keep refusing.

I did get accepted at Brown and Dartmouth too.