Elite Colleges. Yes or No?

The debate that has been going on in class is, will you have a better life if you graduate from an elite college? Why or why not? After reading the New York Times's debate on this I came to a conclusion as to whether or not elite colleges are the best choice to succeed in life.

The New York Times did an article titled, "Does It Matter Where You Go To College?" out of the seven responses to the question the least persuasive one was by Martha O' Connell. O' Connell titled her response, What You Do vs. Where You Go. Her main point was that, the college you attend does not affect how your life will turn out later on. Many successful people enrolled in colleges that are not as well-known, yet they managed to become famous. She stated,

"The “oohs” and “aahs” follow as the audience learns that Steven Spielberg, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates dropped out of college, that Oprah Winfrey is an alumna of Tennessee State and that Ken Burns graduated from Hampshire College."

Although her point is very much true in some cases, not every student turns out to be a celebrity mid-college. I can see where she is coming from when she talks about the outcome of successful college dropouts but I do not agree that it is the same for every student that enrolls in a average college. The way I see it is that celebrities are very lucky people. Connections through friends and family allow them to be successful, but without them the likeliness of succeeding after dropping out of college is very slim. What O' Connell is trying to tell her readers is that aspiring actors or singers will be able to succeed even if they are attending a minor college. I am not saying that smaller colleges are pathways to failure, I am just disagreeing with the way O' Connell worded her point. This is the post that I found least persuasive.

The post that I agreed with the most was, "Graduate School Matters More." by David Breneman. In his response, he declared that attending elite colleges for undergraduate school is not as important as attending an elite college for graduate school. He stated,

"If that path [Graduate School] is likely to be chosen, then what matters most is that the undergraduate college is substantial enough academically to give the student a high probability of being admitted to the graduate or professional school of choice."

What he is trying to say here is that if a student wishes to go to graduate school, the college that they attend for undergraduate school can be an average school more well-known than others but not as elite as what people expect. He backs this information up by saying,

"Performing at a high level in a good quality but not highly prestigious college may give a student a better chance of getting into graduate or professional school than being lost in the middle of the pack in a highly selective institution. The quality of graduate or professional school will matter more in the long run to a student’s success in life than the ranking of the undergraduate college."

Breneman implies that being successful during undergraduate school at an average college is more appealing to graduate school professors than failing at an elite college. He also says that the main aim for college is graduate school and if it is an option for a student then they can focus more on the graduate school they attend rather than undergraduate school. This was the most persuasive post.

My thoughts on elite colleges is that they are very appealing when applying for jobs and it is nice to see the reaction of people when telling them where you are enrolled. I would rather go to an elite college because of the many opportunities that will come out of it. Other people may look at it in a different way and I respect their input in the debate of whether or not elite colleges are necessary to succeed in life.