Harvard as Hogwarts?

Sam M says:

The writer says:

“Well, I loved hearing about Williams College’s two-student classes called tutorials, and how Swarthmore lets students weigh in on almost every big decision made by its administration.”

Meh. People act like this stuff matters. But does it, to the vast majority of students? It didn’t to me. I remember the tour guides talking about all this student union stuff, and my eyes glazing over. Seriously, even after going through college, I have NO IDEA what it means for students to “weigh in” on big decisions made by the administration.

Then this:

“Obviously colleges have picked up on this. But they’re trying too hard. They’re selling the wrong thing. And my friends and I won’t be fooled.”

Oh, sure. You weren’t fooled? That’s why you have looked into applying to Harvard and Cornell and Middlebury.

Yep. That’s striking a note for independence and true meritocracy.

Listen, Harvard has fooled everybody. But since everyone has been fooled, nobody has been fooled. A lot of the brightest kids want to go to school there. So they have really bright kids to pick from. So if you are looking for someone who’s really bright and can jump through all the right hoops (a lot of people are looking for such people) Harvard is a great place to start. So people start there. So people who go to school there do well.

So if you are a bright kid who wants to do well… go to Harvard!Report