Kid gets into all 8 Ivies

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by Kizmet, May 17, 2015.

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  1. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

  2. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    University of Alabama?!?!?

    I've just been offered a free Rolls, Bentley, Porsche, Maserati, BMW, or Lamborghini . . . but I've chosen the Pontiac.
     
  3. AV8R

    AV8R Active Member

    Once I heard his explanation on the video I thought it made sense. It looks like the main factor for him was financial. Sounds like U of Alabama gave him a good deal. He wants to go to med school anyway, so going to Alabama will allow him to save money and (most likely) graduate with less debt. He still has a very strong chance of going to a very nice med school (as long as his Alabama grades and MCAT scores are good).
     
  4. sanantone

    sanantone Well-Known Member

  5. John Bear

    John Bear Senior Member

    He was also accepted at Stanford. As has been reported here, starting this year, Stanford is absolutely free to students from families with a net income under $140,000 a year.

    My oldest grandchild was accepted at Stanford four years ago. The family figured it would cost about $240,000. Max graduates next month from the University of Oregon, which gave him, as a 'presidential scholar,' totally free tuition, room & board, and textbooks for four years.
     
  6. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    I also said this on my Facebook page, but if you've read Malcolm Gladwell's David and Goliath (chapter 2) his odds of success are HIGHER if he attends a school where his "fit" is in the top 1/3 than if he were in the bottom 1/3. Of course we don't know all his stats, so if the Ivy schools were his "reach" schools, he made the right choice!

    PS I believe that at least 1 of his parents are doctors, so he probably didn't qualify for the funding, that's for incomes under 150ish.

    PSS he's smart. He's saving on his undergrad to use his money for grad school. Love that, real brains, not just the trivial pursuit kind.
     
  7. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member


    Aside from saving money it really doesn't matter as much for a doctor. Undergraduate education doesn't drive your career as a physician as much as your medical school (as well as where you complete your residency and in what field).

    My physician graduated from UPenn Medical and completed his residency at Johns Hopkins. His undergrad alma mater? City College of New York. I'll bet he saved a bundle on his undergrad education than if he had opted for the status of say, NYU or Columbia. And yet, his decision doesn't appear to have hindered his medical career (or even his acceptance into a top tier medical school and top ranked residency program).

    Conversely, the lawyer my company retains to handle workers compensation cases has a B.A. from Dartmouth (or A.B. since they're so fancy) and his J.D. from Touro Law. The Ivy League undergrad doesn't seem to be supercharging his career. Oh well, at least he's working as a lawyer. That's an accomplishment these days for a law school graduate.
     
  8. kered

    kered New Member

    I will disagree, respectively of course, with the idea that he should go where he may fit better right now instead of a school like Harvard, Yale or Princeton.
    First of all, you change so much the first month of being away at college, let alone your first entire year. So his "fit" is in a rapidly evolving state. Kids that age adapt quick and it would be just as likely that he would fit right in.
    Second, no school in the world will ever replicate the networking possibilities of H Y P. How many of the most powerful families went through there? How many leaders of industries? How many leaders of countries? Too many to count. The other Ivy's, U of Michigan, Georgetown, NYU; If you live in those cities and graduate from those schools networking is certainly abundant. If you want to live in Alabama forever,I am sure it is fantastic to graduate there and meet all of the alumni and donors. However, how many people are able to make the decision on where they will end up forever at 18?

    I understand the financial aspect, as it is utterly ridiculous how much some colleges cost these days. I understand the undergrad not being as significant if the person has graduate school aspirations, which I definitely agree with.
    All that aside, it is an opportunity that some people would kill for. It is a position that most people can only dream of. And if it was my kid, I would get a second and third job so he can go to Harvard. Why? Because it is a once in a lifetime opportunity.

    The debate aside, it truly is a spectacular situation.
     
  9. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    That sounds an awful lot like the sort of thing a parent tells their child as they are forcing them to attend their own alma mater rather than their school of choice. While it is true that a "kid" might adapt quickly, choosing a college is also the first major decision you are generally afforded. It's your first foray into adult decision making. Sometimes you make the perfect choice. Sometimes you make a not so good choice. But it's part of the process.

    When I graduated from high school, it looked like no one was going to be left in the town of Wilkes-Barre, PA. My entire graduating class, save a handful of people, was leaving the area. The small remnant would attend schools like the University of Scranton, Kings College, Wilkes University, Marywood University and Misericordia. But the majority was scattering to the four corners of the earth to "get out of this town." I was actually quite amazed how many returned within the first year. My first semester at UofS was spent meeting new people. My second semester was spent running into people I had gone to high school with who, just a few months prior, were peeling out of town like they were running from the law.

    Adaptation isn't always so easy. And sometimes making the "bad choice" makes us stronger.


    Networking is great. But networking isn't everything. In some occupations, the networking opportunities come in graduate/professional school, not as an undergraduate. This kid wants to be a doctor. His network is going to largely depend upon people he meets as a medical student and a resident. Those connections are going to be very important. The art history major he dormed with at age 18? Maybe not so much.

    Oh, a whole bunch of powerful families went through there? Who cares? You aren't going to become rich and powerful just because you went to school with a ninth generation Rockefeller. And maybe you don't want to try to worm your way into the inner circle of the nation's elite. But even if you did, attending the same school doesn't mean you are going to be any closer. If you don't come from the private boarding school world you may simply have very little in common with these people. To think that walking through the same hallowed halls as Warren Buffet's granddaughter will realistically gain you any sort of edge in life might be optimistic to the point of naivete.



    If my kid 1) got into Harvard 2) wanted to attend Harvard then I too would get as many jobs as necessary to pay that bill. However, if my kid got into Harvard and didn't want to go to Harvard, I would let them go where they wanted to go. It being his/her life and all. Of course, that would also mean that he/she would blow through the entirety of the savings I painstakingly amassed since their birth before they even put their first medical school application in. And I'm pretty sure I couldn't work enough jobs to fully fund a medical education.

    As for being a "once in a lifetime opportunity" I have to disagree with you there. This kid may very well turn around and apply to Harvard Medical. Or Yale Medical. Or maybe jump to the top of the medical school list (which isn't even an Ivy) and go to Johns Hopkins. And even if this kid goes to JHU for medical school, that leaves open the possibility of completing a PhD or an MPA or an MHA (or even an MBA) at Harvard in the future if that's his goal.

    But, I will agree with you that it's an incredibly opportunity. He is obviously very smart and I'm sure that he'll do great wherever he goes and whatever he decides to do.
     
  10. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    This is exactly the kind of thing that gets studied. Myth busted. EICD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UEwbRWFZVc
     
  11. Neuhaus

    Neuhaus Well-Known Member

    I'm having a very crappy Friday.

    Watching this video makes me feel like I actually did something good for my brain. Thank you for sharing.
     
  12. kered

    kered New Member

    I will leave it alone and agree to disagree, as it appears that dissent is often met with cold reception. I enjoy spirited debate with smart people and it is nothing personal.
    I know that for me, given my path and experience in life, things would have been a lot easier with a richer college experience at a nations top institution of learning. In hindsight, knowing what I know now, that would have been the best case scenario for myself. And I know that if my kids got into one of the elite learning institutions in the world, I would certainly make the case for capitalizing on such an amazing opportunity.
    The fact remains that there is a reason certain school remain atop rankings and public perception. Regardless of your view of the worlds ruling class, it is not by accident that these people attend these universities and end up being the titans of industry, presidents and leaders of their respected endeavors. As someone who did not have any sort of opportunity remotely close to this, I guess I am blinded by the possibilities of such. Everyone has there own path in life and I still find this persons accomplishment outstanding.
     
  13. Koolcypher

    Koolcypher Member

  14. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

    Well, at least he didn't choose a Yugo! :smile:

    J.
     
  15. cookderosa

    cookderosa Resident Chef

    <<I will leave it alone and agree to disagree, as it appears that dissent is often met with cold reception>>

    Huh? Your opinion (go to Harvard anyway) is probably most popularly held opinion in the world...certainly not dessent. I have no investment in what you or anyone believes, I wanted to share a video that I thought might give you more to consider, that's all.
     

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