V_V comments on Why are Harvard's alumni so wealthy? - Less Wrong

11 Post author: JonahSinick 15 March 2014 06:47PM

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Comment author: V_V 15 March 2014 09:44:53PM 1 point [-]

Harvard selects students with higher expected earnings.

Given the statistics, that's almost a tautology.

Harvard selects students from families who are already wealthy (more than other top schools: the wealthy alumni are not self-made). Students who aspire to make a lot of money choose Harvard (over other top schools). Going to Harvard increases students' earning power (more than other top schools), for example, through better networking opportunities.

All these things may work together: rich kids who value money a lot go to Harvard, which gladly accepts them, in order to network with other greedy rich kids.

Comment author: Nate_Gabriel 17 March 2014 05:14:34AM 3 points [-]

What we need to do is convince Harvard to perform a double-blind test. Accept half their students as normal, and the other half at random from their applicants. We'll have an answer within a couple decades.

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