Essay DNA
· Harvard, the nation’s oldest and proudest university, is number 2 Stanford is number 1.
o The zeitgeist has shifted to Palo Alto.
· The numbers bear out the opinion survey’s findings.
o What they tell us is that Harvard’s centuries-old reputation as the nation’s most prestigious university is no longer secure.
· Plenty of explanations for the shift
o But the most obvious factor in Stanford’s favor these days is, of course, its intimate relationship with Silicon Valley, whose technology companies have become the most dynamic drivers of growth in the American economy.
· Critics of Stanford’s ascendance worry that the university has become too close to Silicon Valley- that its values are being warped by the frothy cauldron of venture capital that surrounds it.
· In future decades, the greatest challenge to Stanford’s pre-eminence could come not from Harvard but from the private sector.
o Coursera and Udacity were both founded by Stanford.
Main Idea
While Harvard is one of the best schools in the Nation, Stanford has recently become the number one school because of its ties with the Silicon Valley, which is a major driver of the economy today, and its degrees in computer science and engineering, which is a growing field. However, critics worry that kids feel that starting their own business is more important than finishing school, and it is said that in future decades the biggest challenge for Stanford will be competing with online schools that, ironically, Stanford helped start.
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