# Anyone Here go to an Ivy League School?



## CurbFan (Nov 11, 2009)

Just wondering. Seriously. Not trying to flame or anything else... just curious. And by go, I mean go or went


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## OIFMountaineer (Nov 11, 2009)

I want to build on this question, and ask our friends from across the pond if anyone has went to/currently attend one of the OxBridge schools.


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## Inhibited (Nov 11, 2009)

Nah not me, went to a typical all girls school...


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## butch (Nov 11, 2009)

I know a couple of people with institutional affiliations to Ivy League schools who post here.


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## joswitch (Nov 11, 2009)

OIFMountaineer said:


> I want to build on this question, and ask our friends from across the pond if anyone has went to/currently attend one of the OxBridge schools.



Got my first degree at Cambridge. (The actual Uni. of Cam. , not the Poly! - or as it became - the University of East Anglia)


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## Jes (Nov 11, 2009)

yup. have 1 degree from an ivy, working on a 2nd.


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## LillyBBBW (Nov 11, 2009)

Harvard here.


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## tonynyc (Nov 11, 2009)

Nah,I attended a Jesuit University.


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## cheekyjez (Nov 11, 2009)

Oxford. St John's College.

joswitch, have you picked up your free MA yet?


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## Jes (Nov 11, 2009)

(and yes, before any of you asks, it totally _was_ me and my secret lover who sent those email messages back and forth, and got caught. How embarrassing!)


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## sweet&fat (Nov 11, 2009)

BA from an ivy.


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## mossystate (Nov 11, 2009)

OP, are you having problems with issues with accomodations, due to your size? Or, are you afraid you might be the only fat person on campus? A little more info might be helpful. I would think that no matter the school, these issues and fears are similar. Hopefully, one of the folks who went to an ivy league school can help you out.


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## Happy FA (Nov 11, 2009)

BS from an Ivy


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## Jes (Nov 11, 2009)

mossystate said:


> OP, are you having problems with issues with accomodations, due to your size? Or, are you afraid you might be the only fat person on campus? A little more info might be helpful. I would think that no matter the school, these issues and fears are similar. Hopefully, one of the folks who went to an ivy league school can help you out.



Maybe it's a case of disproving 'fat people are stupid/lazy and don't excel academically' thinking? I don't know. Anyway, I don't need to know the genesis of the question to answer it, personally. I'm interested in reading everyone else's answers, too!


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## ladle (Nov 11, 2009)

I went to a school that had ivy growing up the front of it....does this count?


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## jtgw (Nov 11, 2009)

I'm both teaching and studying at an IL school (UPenn).


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## jtgw (Nov 11, 2009)

cheekyjez said:


> Oxford. St John's College.
> 
> joswitch, have you picked up your free MA yet?



Free?! It costs £10!!!


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## joswitch (Nov 11, 2009)

cheekyjez said:


> Oxford. St John's College.
> 
> joswitch, have you picked up your free MA yet?



Yeah, back in Nineteen ninety *coughcoughcough*

(mine was Clare College btw)


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## joswitch (Nov 11, 2009)

ladle said:


> I went to a school that had ivy growing up the front of it....does this count?



Totally!


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## cheekyjez (Nov 11, 2009)

joswitch said:


> Yeah, back in Nineteen ninety *coughcoughcough*
> 
> (mine was Clare College btw)



Man, you're old. I knew some people at Clare... in the early 21st century.


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## exile in thighville (Nov 11, 2009)

the lawyer chasing the ambulance


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## Gingembre (Nov 11, 2009)

I did not go to Oxford or Cambridge, but I did get a BSc from Newcastle (Upon Tyne) which is in the Russell Group. Sorta an ivy league equivalent, although somewhat bigger. 

I've seen a PHD i want to do at Harvard, if that helps?! But unless I win the lottery I cant see it happening. Ah well.


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## goofy girl (Nov 11, 2009)

haha. And I was excited when I was "accepted" by the community college 


it's too bad I couldn't even go there :sad:


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## joswitch (Nov 11, 2009)

cheekyjez said:


> Man, you're old. I knew some people at Clare... in the early 21st century.



I'm not old - I'm chronologically stacked!


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## PamelaLois (Nov 11, 2009)

There was a lot of ivy at my Uni, but it wasn't an Ivy League. Big Ten (when there were still only 10) BS Agriculture/Animal Science from U of Illinois. Hail to the Chief!


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## tonynyc (Nov 11, 2009)

goofy girl said:


> haha. And I was excited when I was "accepted" by the community college
> 
> 
> it's too bad I couldn't even go there :sad:



And I'm sure both your Wallet and Bank Account thanks you....
total yearly cost for some schools can be at least 50K +


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## 1300 Class (Nov 11, 2009)

I went to UQ (The University of Queensland), which is part of the "Sandstone University" club here in Australia, which is equal to the Ivy League in the states.


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## Jes (Nov 11, 2009)

PamelaLois said:


> BS Agriculture/Animal Science from U of Illinois. Hail to the Chief!


SHAMPOO-BANANA REPRESENT! (Got my BA and my MS from UofI--did you watch the Illinois-Michigan game the other week?!)


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## Dr. Feelgood (Nov 11, 2009)

Happy FA said:


> BS from an Ivy




They have a limitless supply. And now that I have my Ph.D. from Columbia, I happily add to it.


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## TallFatSue (Nov 11, 2009)

Every so often our personnel department gets résumés from people who list degrees from mail-order diploma mills. We call them Poison Ivy League Schools.


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## joh (Nov 11, 2009)

Would any of you ivy guys and gals happen to have done any research related to linguistic analyzing (on computers)? I could really use some help with morphological parsing :bow:

BTW, I haven't gone to college, but plan on applying to Stanford (with RIT -- not an ivy -- as my first choice).


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## jtgw (Nov 11, 2009)

joh said:


> Would any of you ivy guys and gals happen to have done any research related to linguistic analyzing (on computers)? I could really use some help with morphological parsing :bow:
> 
> BTW, I haven't gone to college, but plan on applying to Stanford (with RIT -- not an ivy -- as my first choice).



Hm I've done a bit of work on that kind of thing. I'm actually a PhD candidate in linguistics, so I may be able to help, though my research is focused on historical phonology.


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## joh (Nov 11, 2009)

jtgw said:


> Hm I've done a bit of work on that kind of thing. I'm actually a PhD candidate in linguistics, so I may be able to help, though my research is focused on historical phonology.


Sweet, I'll pm ya! I think I may of found an acceptable replacement for a true morphological parser though.


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## PamelaLois (Nov 12, 2009)

Jes said:


> SHAMPOO-BANANA REPRESENT! (Got my BA and my MS from UofI--did you watch the Illinois-Michigan game the other week?!)



No, I didn't get to watch the game, I work on Saturdays. I barely get to watch the Bears on Sundays even with the Tivo fired up. I miss Cham-bana, I would go back in a heartbeat. I loved living there. When did you granulate?


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## pennswim (Nov 13, 2009)

Currently a senior working on my BS at an Ivy


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## Weeze (Nov 15, 2009)

I went to a school that the girls that DIDN'T get into Princeton go to 

Now... It's dat derr community college fo' me. 

Serious note: I don't know if other community colleges are as good as mine, but after spending a year at a private, fairly well-known, four-year women's college and now spending a year at community college, i would recommend a CC for the first few years to anyone. I never thought i'd say that when I was in high school


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## Mikey (Nov 15, 2009)

I graduated from an Ivy...same class as the President.


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## LillyBBBW (Nov 15, 2009)

krismiss said:


> I went to a school that the girls that DIDN'T get into Princeton go to
> 
> Now... It's dat derr community college fo' me.
> 
> Serious note: I don't know if other community colleges are as good as mine, but after spending a year at a private, fairly well-known, four-year women's college and now spending a year at community college, i would recommend a CC for the first few years to anyone. I never thought i'd say that when I was in high school



I've developed a very cynical view of the college sytem as a whole, mostly due to my experiences at an Ivy. A lot of the programs at an Ivy school are excellent but some of them can be just bla. Many people are paying extra money just to say they graduated from [prestigious school] when they could have gotten an education just as good if not better at a smaller college. Choosing an Ivy school could be the dumbest decision you ever make depending on the field of study. Plus I can tell you first hand that Harvard and MIT are full to the gills with overweight socially awkward people in them so the idea that fat people are too slow to get in to an Ivy is actually quite amusing.


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## Tania (Nov 15, 2009)

I teach at a community college. I'd like to think we're providing good value. 

*Rah-rahs Pac-10*

*Pimps UC Berkeley*

(Go Bears!)


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## jenboo (Nov 15, 2009)

CurbFan said:


> Just wondering. Seriously. Not trying to flame or anything else... just curious. And by go, I mean go or went



We don't have ivy league in Canada


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## SocialbFly (Nov 16, 2009)

CurbFan said:


> Just wondering. Seriously. Not trying to flame or anything else... just curious. And by go, I mean go or went



did you? what was the motivation for your question, if i might add?


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## ThatFatGirl (Nov 16, 2009)

Tania said:


> I teach at a community college. I'd like to think we're providing good value.
> 
> *Rah-rahs Pac-10*
> 
> ...




I have a BFA from a school that might be considered among the ivy league of art schools, but I would never have made it there had it not been for the one year I hid away at my local community college. I deferred my admission to art school because I was too intimidated of failure, too shy, and afraid I was too fat to get around the city where it is located. My parents insisted I spend that year in cc where it turned out I had the most wonderful, kind, crazy kind of talented art teacher who took time to get to know me and encouraged me to take a chance and go away to the big leagues so to speak. He was fabulous. 

Bonus of that year, my parents saved about $15K on some basic course credits that transferred over to the art school.


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## Mikey (Nov 17, 2009)

jenboo said:


> We don't have ivy league in Canada



You have McGill, which had it been 100 miles south would probably have been an Ivy!


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## Mikey (Nov 17, 2009)

jenboo said:


> We don't have ivy league in Canada



You have McGill, which had it been 100 miles south would probably have been an Ivy!


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## Still a Skye fan (Nov 17, 2009)

Nope, my parents never had the money or means to send any of the kiddies to Ivy League schools...plus the dinky high school I went to offered nothing substantial in the way of scholarships (they still don't). I graduated high school with honors (whatever that means) and had good grades.

I attended a small college in my area as a commuter...never had the cash to go away to school. It wasn't a community college (and there's nothing wrong with those), I guess it'd be considered a private one. I earned a BA in English there.

I went to Grad School in Albany, NY at SUNY Albany and earned an MLS degree. I still commuted there and home.

I was fortunate enough to find a reference librarian gig and use both my degrees on a daily basis.

Yeah, I could've done different things with my education but I think I'm doing okay with what I have.

Dennis


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## Tad (Nov 18, 2009)

Short answer: Nope.

Long answer: Im Canadian, but the last couple of years of high school I was at an American school over in Europe. I have an aptitude for multiple-choice tests, so scored really well on the SAT exam, and the (American) guidance counselor suggested I could realistically apply at number of well known US colleges, and a lot of the Americans I knew at the school were suggesting the same thing. My feeling was why go to the US and pay huge amounts of money, when I can go to a perfectly good school in Canada and spend less on my total costs of education than I would for just tuition for a couple of years in the US? Still, I wondered if I was making a mistake. Until our very crusty and generally disapproving Welsh chemistry teacher came up to me one day, and sniffed I looked into that school you are going to. Seems to be a quality institution. I figured if he was willing to admit that, I couldnt be going too far wrong. 

(and by the way: no real regrets on where I went. Of course Im curious about what life would have been like if Id chosen otherwise, but I think the program & school that I chose matched me reasonably well. Maybe I should have taken a different branch of engineering, but who knows how that would have worked out?)


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## Mikey (Nov 18, 2009)

Some years ago when I was on a bbw dating site I had on my profile that I was an Ivy grad, doing so with some trepidation. A woman responded to my add saying that she didn't go to an Ivy, but probably one upped me. When I inquired where she went, it was The University of Chicago...she definitely trumped me. There are quite a few schools out there that are either the same quality or better then Ivy League schools, they just didn't have as good "press agents" (as they were called in the 1930's). 

The thing about the Ivies is that they tend to stand out on one's resume' and on interviews. That said there are hordes of really bright people who go to all sorts of schools ranging from community and state colleges to the full range of private schools. Education is what you make of it. As a professor of mine once said, somebody had to be the bottom of the class at Harvard! 

I also think that these days there are no 'bad" schools in the US. Just better schools. Again, that runs the full gamut of colleges and universities.


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## FatAndProud (Nov 18, 2009)

This is a touchy subject for me. It has always been nagging at the back of my mind...

For the longest time education has been important to me. My family is extremely poor, blue collar, run of the mill, typical paycheck-to-paycheck kinda family. I never wanted that for myself. I love my family dearly, but the things they do I don't agree with. I was very angry for the longest time because I (my parents) could not afford to go to an Ivy League and what ever else. 

I worked my hardest to get scholarships and I paid for about $18k worth of quality education for free. My parents never even thought I'd be at college (my brother is still a loser, drug problems, lives with mom, etc. and he's 29). The community college that I went to was the best thing to have ever happened to me. I did a lot of community service, I met a lot of quality people, and I learned a WHOLE lot.

I now attend a university in Detroit and I really don't see what all the hub-bub is about. I feel I learned more at my community college and the classes here are more discussional (besides the sciences, of course). I do feel that university does expose you to other cultures and people that you would never have met if you hadn't left your comfort zone.

I think too much pressure is put upon the youth to get into prestigious facilities when they all are teaching the same things (with variations), and every professor has their own teaching styles with their personal emphasises.
It's hard enough as it is to be judged on academics; why should we be judged on what building we learned in? I also think you can make classes more challenging by opting for the Honors option. I am graduating with Departmental Honors from my university, which will ultimately look good and it just makes things more interesting as far as classes go. 

I don't know, I don't regret anything. I see every school has their strong points and it's whatever makes YOU comfortable because it will be your place of focus for the next 4-5 years (give or take). I love the fact that one can travel from university to university to hone their interests/skills. After my B.S. I would like to study at UofM or maybe move out of Michigan. I haven't decided yet because I'm not sure exactly what I want to do. I don't really have anyone to talk to about my aspirations, yet.


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## sweet&fat (Nov 18, 2009)

FatAndProud said:


> I think too much pressure is put upon the youth to get into prestigious facilities when they all are teaching the same things (with variations), and every professor has their own teaching styles with their personal emphasises.
> It's hard enough as it is to be judged on academics; why should we be judged on what building we learned in? I also think you can make classes more challenging by opting for the Honors option. I am graduating with Departmental Honors from my university, which will ultimately look good and it just makes things more interesting as far as classes go.



I think one significant factor in education is the student. You can go to the best university with the best libraries, fantastic resources, and famous professors and still have a deeply average education if you don't take advantage of them. The same in reverse- a student who takes advantage of great professors etc at an "average" university can do amazing things!


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## Mikey (Nov 18, 2009)

sweet&fat said:


> I think one significant factor in education is the student. You can go to the best university with the best libraries, fantastic resources, and famous professors and still have a deeply average education if you don't take advantage of them. The same in reverse- a student who takes advantage of great professors etc at an "average" university can do amazing things!



I agree 150%!! That is what I implied earlier.


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## SocialbFly (Nov 19, 2009)

CurbFan said:


> Just wondering. Seriously. Not trying to flame or anything else... just curious. And by go, I mean go or went



Again, i ask you CurbFan, it is just such a random question, i was wondering why you asked.

Did you go to an Ivy league school?

Did you want to and couldnt because____________?

Why did you ask, and oh, do you like milk in your tea?


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## Shosh (Nov 19, 2009)

I did not go to an Ivy League school, but my father was a university professor for nearly three decades. He is retired now.

That is as close as I get to Academia.:bow:


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## collared Princess (Nov 19, 2009)

Philippe went to Columbia ..along with Pres Obama...every year they get an update on where everyone is and everyone tries to out do each other..this year they said well the pissing contest stops..Barack Obama white house..Pres of the United states Columbia University 1983 ..so cool


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## collared Princess (Nov 19, 2009)

I went to the school of hard knocks...


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## andyk (Nov 19, 2009)

Read Modern Languages at Oxford in the 80s...very barren ground for the discerning FA then though-even then nice middle class parents were paranoid about their dear daughters getting fat ("Soooo common my dear").


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## ladle (Nov 20, 2009)

I'll go a step further and say that education is not a guarantee of success either. I know so many people in my father's circle of friends who left high school very early and have worked they way up to be very successful business owners.


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## Mikey (Nov 20, 2009)

collared Princess said:


> Philippe went to Columbia ..along with Pres Obama...every year they get an update on where everyone is and everyone tries to out do each other..this year they said well the pissing contest stops..Barack Obama white house..Pres of the United states Columbia University 1983 ..so cool



I must have overlooked that in Columbia Magazine. I was Class of 83 and knew the President in passing. Who knew?!?


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## cheekyjez (Nov 20, 2009)

sweet&fat said:


> I think one significant factor in education is the student. You can go to the best university with the best libraries, fantastic resources, and famous professors and still have a deeply average education if you don't take advantage of them. The same in reverse- a student who takes advantage of great professors etc at an "average" university can do amazing things!



Our worst lecturers were the ones who were deepest into research. We had a Field's Medalist who once gave the same lecture on Friday that he'd given on Tuesday. When I called it out, he said "well, these are the only notes I have with me" and kept going. Just awful.

Oxbridge is a different world from the Ivies - for one thing, it doesn't cost any more than any other university so there isn't the cash factor. There's still a class perception problem, where smart kids from worse high schools don't apply because they think they won't get in, or won't fit in once they're there.

The biggest advantage that Oxbridge has is smaller class sizes, so you get more attention from professors. In my day, we'd have 2-3 tutorials per week (called "supervisions" at the other place), which were 1 professor:2 students. They'd be able to explain anything we didn't get and keep at it until we understood it. Other places just didn't have the resources to do that. Unfortunately, Oxford was moving away from tutorials and towards classes of 6-8 students.


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## liz (di-va) (Nov 20, 2009)

1. I am curious why you are asking! (Whoops, already been asked. But I stand by #2).

2.


CurbFan said:


> And by go, I mean go or went


This bit is cracking me up.


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## Mikey (Nov 21, 2009)

I started college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, took a couple of courses at SUNY-Purchase during an internship semester and finished up at Columbia. That said, I have had good and bad professors at both. However, I have to say percentage wise,I had significantly more really great professors at Columbia (and Barnard), then I did at the two state schools. I am not going to apologize for attending an Ivy, loving it and excelling when I was there. However, again, I will agree that it is what you do with your education is what makes your experience either a fruitful one or a dud.

As for saving money by going to a community college, I can tell you that having IVY creds definitely has gotten me loads of interviews and some pretty spectacular positions. I don't think you get the same bang for your buck at the Community Colleges, however, you probably got a great education and should be proud of it! Sadly, it is no longer easy to get financial aid and many are not able to go to the college they truly aspired to. 

The other caveat is that college is not for everyone, and there is nothing wrong with that at all!!! I dated a girl whose dad was the "plumber to the stars" and he made much more money then my father, an attorney who did pretty well.


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## BigBeautifulMe (Nov 21, 2009)

Di, I can tell you the OP is a skinny college-aged male, so it's not that he was discriminated against for his size or anything. lol. Other than that, I can offer no hints on motivation.

I went to a well-known quasi-Ivy - one of the Seven Sisters.


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## SocialbFly (Nov 21, 2009)

BBM, it just raises my hackles when someone posts something like that then never revisits the thread, we are smart enough and good enough to go to IVY league, doesnt mean a thing, i have worked in several of the top ten ICUs including the number one open heart unit in the USA...doesnt make me any better or any smarter or any luckier than the next person...

i would feel better if he would come back and say this is why i asked...but instead....gone....


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## BigBeautifulMe (Nov 22, 2009)

lol, not everyone is on Dims as often as we are, Di.  Just saying - from his low post count you wouldn't know it, but this person is a frequent Dims chatter - he's not a fly-by-night ask questions and leave person, if it helps any. lol. He may just have a paper to write or something.


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## butch (Nov 22, 2009)

Ah ha, this thread has reminded me that I did attent a school with an ivy league reputation, I went to a community college that has the reputation of being one of the best in the US. If I recall, the particular campus I went to was nicknamed "Princeton on the Prairie" although you'd be hard-pressed to call that area anything other than suburban sprawl nowadays.

Chalk me up as another supporter of community colleges-smaller class sizes, good professors, and much cheaper. Also, as an alumni of one of the top up and coming colleges in the US, whose President was recently named as one of the top 10 college presidents by Time magazine, I'm also a big fan of public universities, flagship campus or not. Go Retrievers!


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## Ruby Ripples (Nov 22, 2009)

mossystate said:


> OP, are you having problems with issues with accomodations, due to your size? Or, are you afraid you might be the only fat person on campus? A little more info might be helpful. I would think that no matter the school, these issues and fears are similar. Hopefully, one of the folks who went to an ivy league school can help you out.



I love you. :wubu:


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