[ClearCase_guy]

There is a flip side to this:

I'll offer a flip-side to your flip-side:

The real value of going to an Ivy League school is that you get to spend 4-years with very bright, competitive, driven students. They will keep you on your A-game. Hanging around smart people always pays dividends.

But that begs the question: Why do you have to spend $60,000 a year just to hobnob with a choice set of peers?

Harvard is a rip-off -- it offers very little except admission to an elite club. After that, as an undergrad, it's really up to you. One can argue that the ROI is worth it (I would not argue that, but someone might) but there is absolute price-gouging going on.

[justlurking]

But that begs the question: Why do you have to spend $60,000 a year just to hobnob with a choice set of peers?

One reason: because you can afford it (or at least your parents can). The reality is that a diploma from a Ivy League school is an E-Ticket to certain things. It's not fair, but very little in life is "fair".

Harvard is a rip-off -- it offers very little except admission to an elite club.

Admission to that "club" is also admission to a network of contacts that can be leveraged for years after you graduate. Is it worth it? Depends on what you do with it.