I think it's more that the focus of people here tends not to be so much on material success, but more on keeping kids happy and learning, then supporting the ability to achieve academically later on. If a child matures into a thinker who is poised to make great discoveries, she's simply different from the many educated people out there who have difficulty finding jobs. It's not about finding a job for that person, but about expressing brilliance.
It would be relevant if we are assuming that Dartmouth serves as a proxy IQ signal to the world.
That is to say, if you went to Dartmouth, you assume IQ = 99th percentile and above.
I'm certainly not trying to shut down discussion on the topics in this thread, but I disagree. The difference is between seeming possibly highly intelligent, and being poised to take full advantage of one's talents. (FWIW I also wouldn't assume that someone from Dartmouth is at or above the 99th percentile for IQ anwyay.) There's something to be said for having academic opportunities opened for one at an institution, but employment opportunity is just that.
With regard to needing credentials in order to be in the right place at the right time to foster one's development, that may be truer for some disciplines than others. One can't sit in one's basement doing research on one's own that requires a large hadron collider, but one can think the heck out of some abstract math concepts.
