I'm glad to hear from so many who went to state schools and were successful. I work in a science field with close ties to the local uni and most of the faculty in that department went to non-ivy schools for their terminal degrees. At other institutions I have been surrounded by ivy league level terminal degree holders. In my field what counts for admission to graduate school is grades, research experience, publications (the number of undergrads publishing is amazing) and the institution they attended. Students who went to Community College and have lower grades after transferring are looked at more harshly, as are students with good grades from places known to have grade inflation. At the junior faculty level it is all about who you trained with, your publication record, and your funding situation (grant in hand =job). Thus I conclude that these things vary by institution, field, and politics (the university kind, not the national kind).
On another note, this seems reminiscent of "grooming" your DC for college where you strive to guess what will impress (grades, test scores, letters of rec, working or volunteering in DC's intended field), each field will have admission criteria for the next level. The problem, IMO, with the big step up to the real world is balancing what you can help your DC achieve with what will actually help them move into the real world. In that regard it seems just like the college admissions game. Should they take piano, violin, or penny whistle (points for quirkiness)? How will this impact their future activity level and achievements? (competitions? orchestra? youth symphony? ) Should they work during undergrad? Will it hurt their grades, ability to volunteer, decrease time spent in the computer lab/writing an app/learning about the next big thing? For each decision, there is a balance between the investment of time and money vs. benefit and long term consequences.
For DD's undergraduate degree the calculation is not simple or straight forward, but it is clear: Investment (lots of money vs. debt free) + time (equivalent) = benefit (prestige+ degree vs. accomplishments + degree)
Yes, I'm throwing in accomplishments on one term because I think DD will be able to volunteer and maybe work in her field without worrying about pay levels since she will not be racking up debt.
