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GOLDSEA |
ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
ARE IVY DEGREES WORTH THE SACRIFICES
ending their kids to ivy league universities is the dream of every Asian American parent. Or so it seems. And there is no shortage of young AA willing to oblige. As of 2000, Asian Americans made up 12-19% of the undergrad enrollments of the top-20 ivies.
No one questions the prestige associated with ivy degrees. In fact, sneer critics, that's the only thing bought with the extra money. And even that, they add, is wearing thin in a nation in which he cultural center of gravity has shifted to California.
It's true that investments in high ivy tuitions often don't show up in career earnings when compared with graduates of public universities of comparable student body profiles. But the criticisms run deeper than return on investment. Some Asian Americans who have attended ivy league colleges have come away regretting their decisions for other reasons.
Foremost is the sense that the ivies are structured for the benefit of legatees, the progeny of blueblooded alumni. Comprising upwards of 40% of some ivies, the legatees are often exempted from stringent admissions standards. The result is that AA students with excellent credentials are the workhorses preserving the institutions' high academic reputations, thereby giving a free ride to undeserving legatees.
Another common complaint is that the deck is stacked socially against Asian males in a system designed to preserve the princely status quo of the scions of WASP families. A disproportionate number of attractive AA females are admitted by the ivies, some have observed, while far fewer attractive AA males are admitted. This subtle bias, suspect critics, is implemented in the screening interviews used by most ivies.
Then there's the Eurocentric worldview imposed by the courses. Not to mention the lousy weather, bland food and having to put up with locals hostile toward Asians. Contrast all this against the majority-ease lifestyles enjoyed by the AA in, say, the UC campuses.
The bragging rights an ivy education affords parents, conclude critics, are far outweighed by the psychic and emotional sacrifices exacted from their kids.
Does an ivy education provide rewards commensurate with the sacrifices? Or is it a trap for AA with overzealous parents with old-world views?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:01:03 PM)
My sister graduated from an ivy league school in 1993. However, she was rejected from medical school, even though my sister received a BS in pre-med. I wanted my sister to study physical therapy, nursing, or other majors rather than pre-med. But, my sister chose it, and I could not believe it. Believe me. My sister is smart, although her interview for attending medical school was a complete disaster. According to her, she said it is not only based upon your major's g.p.a. Answering the interviewer's questions are also an important key factor. My sister could not really answer the interviewer's questions well. Well, at least she tried. Right now, my sister is studying in another school, not an ivy, and she is majoring in P.T.
Anyway, I am not saying that all AA's should study in an ivy. I know that AA's, not all, would love to attend ivy league schools. But, how many could make it? Not many. Besides, ivy degrees are not the only ones to really sacrifice. Every four-year school, whether public, private, or an ivy, it is worth to sacrifice a degree in any of the three.
dsfbcbsijbdax
Friday, June 28, 2002 at 07:38:57 (PDT)
Idiot-savant,
party school or not party school. That is the question.
Hey you did your time. No need pondering what could have happened.
You could have done what some on my friends at MIT and Harvard did, they cross the bridge and partied at BU, BC, Tufts, or whatever student club was having a party that weekend.
It's not like your confined to Havard Square or something. Take off the crimson sweat shirt and no one will be the wiser. It's not like SAT scores are tattoo on people's head in Boston.
AC Dropout
Friday, June 28, 2002 at 06:09:59 (PDT)
T.H. Lien:
I'm aware of the study ...but an issue for me is not only the future earning stream but the sense of personal fulfillment and happiness.
The four years of college are some of the best years of your life and you don't need to spend them in some drab Eastern private college. Like the study suggests, a Harvard material will succeed eventually in life whether she attends Harvard or not. There is no question that Harvard is selective ...an average Harvard freshman was not only a top scholar but typically the Class President and Yearbook Editor in her high school. Students of this caliber will succeed no matter where they attend college ..
An alternative that graduating high school students might consider is to attend less-prestigious school on generous scholarship package covering full-tuition, room & board, etc. I was a National Merit Finalist and could attend one of several high-quality public or private college on such scholarship, and even receive individualized attention at Honors Programs, etc. I wish I had chosen such path.
As far as the assortative mating, you assume first that there is much mating to begin with. As a general rule, the more prestigious a school, the less mating of any kind going on ...Some of the white students who graduated in my (competitive) high school class chose colleges where they thought they would enjoy most sex, not a bad idea. On reunion I could see that many of them married attractive spouses whom they met in colleges.
Idiot-savant
Wednesday, June 26, 2002 at 21:22:18 (PDT)
Eds,
What happened to the quotes from "True Oxonian" in my post of June 24? Without them, it's rather difficult for the reader to know what I'm arguing against.
Asian Dominatrix
Tuesday, June 25, 2002 at 17:58:32 (PDT)
[Nothing was intentionally deleted. However, there appears to have been a processing error. Our apologies. --Ed]
Idiot-savant:
Interestingly enough, there was a study pointing out that getting into an Ivy League school was a larger determinant of future salary than actually attending that school. The research focused on a comparison of graduates of highly ranked schools and individuals who had been accepted to those schools but chose to attend a lower-tier school for whatever reason (finance, personal preference, etc.). I'll try to dig that up for you ...
On the other hand, the Ivies offer an assortative mating advantage. Everyone you meet in school has been prescreened ... hehehehe.
T.H. Lien
Tuesday, June 25, 2002 at 15:08:08 (PDT)
Idiot-savant
these are my thoughts exactly. Asian parents think if you go to a Ivy league school you are going to get a kick ass job.These asian students can't apply what they learned because they can't interact with no one.
Williams BMW F1 V10
Tuesday, June 25, 2002 at 10:25:48 (PDT)
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