Over-Rated Ivy League

Introduction

*Myth: I*vy League Equals Success

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Overrated Ivy League Education

In fact, many experts believe Ivy League undergraduate education is actually worse than public universities. In 2004, ninety-nine Fortune 1,000 companies appointed new CEOs. Only one had an Ivy League undergraduate degree, Charles McClure of ArvinMeritor Corporation, a 1984 Cornell mechanical engineering graduate (Jones 2A). Donald Asher, an author of ten books specializing in careers and higher education, reported that one Ivy League college was recently “excoriated in a national report because only 40 percent of its classes are taught by tenure-track faculty; the rest are taught by an ad hoc collection of instructors, graduate students, and adjuncts” (Asher par. 8). Alton Roberts, a retired professor and Ivy League grad, served as principal investigator for a national study of undergraduate instruction when he was with the Center for the Improvement of Instruction at Syracuse University. After investigating the undergraduate education at Ivy League colleges, he concluded, “The undergraduate at these schools is pretty much there to keep the streets paved. The money doesn't go toward the undergraduate budget. A student will face large classes, and teaching assistants instead of professors. The Ivy League degree is a brand, and there is the presumption of intelligence, the presumption of competence, but the undergraduate is not the important person at these schools" (Asher par.8). These reports further evidence the neglect of undergraduates by Ivy League schools, and perhaps provide the reasons for the declining value of an Ivy League undergraduate degree.

Weighing the Costs

Economy Slumps Towards Public Colleges

As the economy continues to slump, high school seniors are being forced to consider cheaper alternatives for college. “It’s a great time for the public colleges,” stated Paul Kanarek, Vice President of the Princeton Review test preparation service...