Does the name of the school from which you graduated matter? Margaret Heffernan argues, No.
“What matters is who you are and what you’ve achieved outside … of an institution. The true test of a great employee … (is) their ability to see what is needed — in the company, in the market — without being told.”
She further argues that the United States is rapidly approaching a when the number of candidates with great degrees from great schools are plentiful — even over-supplied.
At the same time, conventional wisdom holds that different schools offer different kinds and levels of contacts to help with life after school. Even a cursory review of names on lists of alumni and positions in society that alumni hold indicates the kinds of contacts that students can expect to make at a school. These contacts can make life changing differences, limiting some and pushing others beyond their earlier expectations.