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I did, too. Two of them, actually. And later in life I worked at a fairly prestigious liberal arts college. I accept that you learned best that way, for your major and situation. I found that kind of thing to be a monumental time suck in my particular majors.
My point was not that people don't learn in different ways and that it was a blanket 'this is terrible' kind of thing-I apologize if that is what came across, because if so, I just did what I truly dislike-generalized my personal situation and tastes.
My point was to illustrate the erroneous thinking some (on this board) have that the best possible way to learn is to chew the fat with doctoral candidates and professors. For some majors and some people and some situations, yes, but not as a blanket statement-and in many situations, that kind of one-on-one time just isn't possible.
we're talking about $150 million that Harvard would pay per year. I doubt Harvard is putting up that amount of money per year ... but the university certain could afford to do so with its large endowment returns and annual fundraising.
This is easy enough to look up. The 2011-2012* Common Data Set for Harvard lists their total need-based institutional aid as $146.3 million for that year (H1). Yale's institutional aid to all undergraduate students is $116 million for 2013-14. Princeton, $107 million.
Also, from the same older Harvard source, the per-student average need-based financial aid package (excluding loans) is $39,607 (H2k).
Elite schools are fairly generous to students with demonstrated need (as figured by the school), and they certainly have the resources to provide it.
* This is the most recent CDS I could find on their site. Don't know why they don't have anything more recent. Maybe they stopped participating.
Ok, my oldest is a junior...tons of extra curriculars...top 3 class rank (Good school 450ish in class), will be natl. merit finalist, taking SAT soon but PSAT equates to 1530ish.
I know there are many other variables but in a general case I looking for something rough like if Harvard is 65k a year would them maybe let him in for 1/2 price? 75%? Etc.
You'll never get into Harvard with a 1530, no top 30 school.
Class rank is secondary to unweighted GPA-if its good enough, with ECs maybe a school in the 40-60 ranking.
The OP has the answer/info he sought, but being that it's Christmastime, I didn't want this chestnut of what I consider dubious wisdom to go unchallenged.
As noted earlier in the thread, I attended Harvard as an undergrad in the 1990s. Are they institutions that place a great deal of energy on research? Absolutely. But does that mean there is not an amazing, engaging experience for undergraduates? Absolutely not.
There are certainly a number of very large lecture courses where the "sage on the stage" imparts wisdom and much of the discussion takes place in graduate student-led sessions. These will generally represent a quarter to 40% of one's time at a school like Harvard. However, the opportunity to have (for instance) Michael Sandel lecture on moral philosophy, or Greg Mankiw or Marty Feldstein on principles of economics, is an amazing experience.
Yet I and my friends got to engage with leading faculty at a very one-on-one level. I had an eight-person seminar class with an eminent, top-rank faculty member who was past president of the American Political Science Association; spending two hours a week with a person like that, and getting to know them on an engaged, first-name basis is also part of the undergraduate experience at a school like Harvard.
My wife had a chance to work in a research lab as an undergraduate assistant for three years with an eminent psychology professor -- a colleague of B.F. Skinner and a National Medal of Science awardee. Although she did not pursue the field of psychology as a graduate student as she thought she might, the experience was powerful and meaningful. She also had small classes and thesis advising time with pre-eminent faculty who knew her on a first-name basis.
I certainly gained a prestigious degree. Networking? Hasn't been something I've leveraged or needed to leverage as an alum. The four years spent there were life-changing, yes, as they are for many college students.
There are plenty of good reasons not to go to an "elite school" -- depending on the field, the strength of an in-state school, in-state tuition options. Residents of NC, VA, MI, CA and TX have far better options on this front than, say, folks from NH, FL, LA, AL, and ND, to pick on a few states. And, I think you can get a great education at many places.
But, if you have an opportunity to attend an elite institution, it is an opportunity to consider and ponder carefully.
Not compared to UNC, UVa, UCs (LA, Berkley, SD), UMich, UTx.
I'm not arguing that FL is better than (fill in the state here) when it comes to state universities. I am arguing that FL residents have VERY good choices when looking at state universities and it does not belong on the bottom of the barrel list.
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