Success Happy

Is it possible for a person to go to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford and still not be successful in life?

Like is it possible for a person to go to Harvard or Yale or a college of similar name and still not have a big house, six figure job, and high status? How often does that happen?

Public Comments

1. It is definitely possible. Probably if they majored in something with a bad job market. You see people that don't go to college sometimes be miraculously successful, so why not the other way around? But, there is no way around the fact that is it excellent to go to college, whether it guarantees future success or not.
2. Going to an elite school doesn't guarantee you those things. You still have to work hard like most college students. Going to an elite school just challenges your critical thinking skills and provide you with great connections and networking. I know many students from ivies that are either broke cause they can not get a job with a bad GPA or they are just ordinary people. In fact, My biology, AP Physics B, and AP Calculus AB teachers graduated from Harvard, Columbia, and Yale (respectively) and they are earning around 40-50K.
3. That is very possible. If the person got in because daddy made huge financial contributions to the school, they will probably not make it through the whole 4 years and will become a drop out. Also, coming from a rich family there is the higher possibility of becoming addicted to alcohol or even drugs. If the person just doesn't apply themselves they will not hold down a major job. However, if they had what it takes to get into the school and make it through all four years in good standing, then they most likely will be able to pursue a high end job and lead a successful life since they had a successful academic and dedicated youth. High achievers have high success rates.
4. Everyone else is off. First of all, you cannot flunk out of top schools, most students who make it in stay in. Nearly all Harvard grads get high GPAs because of the grade inflation that goes on there. Almost all people who graduate Harvard can end up in top places due to connections and rarely will you meet Harvard grads who do not make six figures. If the salary says six figures, believe me, they are getting bonuses too.