Originally Posted by HowlerKarma
I'm not so sure that it's not. The reason why I think that the behavior at the elite end of the scale IS relevant to the rest of higher ed is the phenomenon that has been driven by the crazy coming from the top end.

Because they are at the top of the academic hierarchy.

So, if you are lower on the hierarchy, you emulate the institutions that are better and *more* than you so that you can become more like them. Because there is a reason that they are elite and you are not.

It's kind of sad in a way.

Lesser institutions looking to become as much like Harvard as possible, all the while knowing that they will never *be* Harvard.