Blog #10

This research paper recognizes that the Ivy Leagues have a skewed view about determining a student's success and this view continues to have negative implications to society. Their definition of a successful student plays into this idea of "culture of smartness" reserving success for those who are not only intelligent but wealthy as well. This paper discusses the upsetting reality that students have been trained to select majors that will satisfy their luxurious lifestyles rather than selecting majors based on passion. The urge for Ivy students to grow their wealth through education only furthers the gap between the rich and poor, presumably dismantling the theory of meritocracy. In many way the elite are at fault for defining success in such a way, however society has done very little to change this definition as society values a testocratic merit system, a system where students are deemed intelligent based of of a single test score. To force the elite to end the culture of smartness and start to close the gap between wealthy and poor, society must start to value a democratic merit system in the United States' education system.

Shareable link to paper: https://docs.google.com/a/scarletmail.rutgers.edu/document/d/1NzjE_Pz2ApCOWs8I1jdYcsPM3tvufiODc0CJHFuDd2A/edit?usp=sharing

Works Cited

1.  Bruni, Frank. Where You Go Is Not Who You'll Be: An Antidote to the College Admissions Mania. New York: Grand Central, 2015. Print.
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4. Guinier, Lani. The Tyranny of the Meritocracy: Democratizing Higher Education in America. Boston, MA: Beacon, 2015. Print.
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6. Kazin, Michael. "New Ivy League, Same Old Elitism." Chronicle of Higher Education 11 Sept. 2015: 4. Academic Search Premier. Web. 1 Nov. 2016.
7. Lawler, Peter Augustine. "Grade Inflation, Democracy, And The Ivy League." Perspectives On Political Science 30.3 (2001): 133. Academic Search Premier. Web. 11 Oct. 2016. 
8. Nazaryan, Alexander. "American Horror, Ivy League Edition." Newsweek. N.p., 25 Feb. 2016. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.
9. Peterson, Devon. “Careers at Princeton: The Allure and Drawbacks of Elite Jobs.” Daily Princetonian, 2002.
10. UNZ, RON. "The Myth Of American Meritocracy." American Conservative 11.12 (2012): 14. Points of View Reference Center. Web. 5 Dec. 2016.
11. Vance, Stanley C. "Higher Education For The Executive Elite." California Management Review 8.4 (1966): 21-30. Business Source Premier. Web. 1 Nov. 2016.