Less than 1% of U.S. college students have attended an Ivy League university, yet these schools dominate employers, media and parents’ wishes. But why do we never hear of the other 99%?
Today, top universities, such as the Ivy Leagues (a group of eight elite schools in the Northeast) and other elite institutions are portrayed as the pinnacles of success. These highly selective institutions dominate the media causing families to pressure their children to attend.
This obsession diminishes the value of regional universities, community colleges, and state schools to be cast aside, despite their capability of offering strong educational opportunities. Therefore, society’s overemphasis on elite universities creates a harmful prestige-driven culture that pressures students and reinforces educational inequality, even when affordable and practical pathways are available.
An effective solution to this problem is through changing public perception by launching national awareness campaigns, reforming media coverage, and highlighting employers increasingly prioritize skills over college degrees.
The first solution to the overemphasis on elite universities is launching national awareness campaigns that promote success stories from regional colleges and universities. For example, the Association of Community College Trustees organizes Community College Month each April, a nationwide campaign aimed to raise awareness of the importance of community colleges in workforce preparation, economic growth, and accessible education (Community College Month 2025 Highlights). By showcasing the great accomplishments of community college students, it challenges the idea that only elite schools produce successful graduates. If we further organized more campaigns, we would help families and students see the value in public education.
The second solution to fixing the overemphasis on Ivy League universities is reforming media coverage to highlight affordable colleges along with displaying success stories from those that didn’t attend the Ivy Leagues. In the book Where You Go Is Not Who You’ll Be, author Frank Bruni describes the unfair and crazed college admissions system. He points out that half the winners of the MacArthur Foundation genius grants, “got their undergraduate educations at public and private schools” (Bruni 31). This demonstrates why the reformation of media is necessary, the public needs to see that success can emerge from any number of schools, not just the few highly selective ones.
A third way to address the excessive focus on elite universities is by showing that more employers are beginning to value skills more than degrees. Many believe that going to a prestigious school guarantees a successful career. However the shifting job market shows this is outdated. According to Forbes, “Accenture, Bank of America, Delta, Google, IBM and Kellogg’s, among others, have also reduced the number of jobs requiring post-secondary qualifications. The result is that 20% of U.S. jobs on LinkedIn don’t require a four-year college degree, and the share of these job posts has grown by 30% in six months” ( Morel). This demonstrates that corporations prioritize skills and experience over college name. By promoting awareness of this shift, families can realize that long-term success depends more on determination and skill than on attending an Ivy League.
Supporters argue elite institutions ensure opportunities and success, but this isn’t the case. In the book Where You Go is Not Who You’ll Be, Frank Bruni argues against this belief, and after researching the Forbes’s 30 under 30 honorees’ schools,“We found that most Forbes 30 Under 30 honorees attended ordinary colleges” (Bruni 36). This shows that one’s school doesn’t determine their success, and many young men and women have been celebrated as pioneers in their respective fields even if they went to an average school.
There is a clear overemphasis on the importance of going to an Ivy League school in America; this puts pressure on teenagers nationwide and is unhealthy. This problem could be solved by launching national campaigns to highlight success stories of those that didn’t make it into prestigious schools, a reformed media coverage that highlights schools for their affordability and students’ success, and lastly showing that employers are increasingly prioritizing competency and skill over education. If society can shift its focus from chasing prestige to valuing determination and growth, students can pursue opportunities that truly meet their goals. Success shouldn’t be reserved for those that attend only a few elite universities, it’s built through determination and effort by the students themselves.
