You also need to remember your goal and tailor your approach accordingly.
It's strategic on a number of levels because it's just a system to be gamed.
Harvard and Yale are very important for certain career paths (certain business consulting jobs, etc.),
Depends...
DW and I talked this weekend about some jobs she did not take back in her early 20s. One was with an M&A firm ( Mergers and Acquisitions) in Dallas.
"Everyone was highly intelligent, highly successful, and the guys were ALL GORGEOUS!"
I replied to her that my MBA profs all said that the best looking people were in M&A.
Ironically, that was probably the first firm that wanted to hire her for her ability. Good looks were a dime a dozen there so you had to be smart so they looked right past her appearance.
