<prompt> Human: Heres the situation: Im currently in my first semester at an Ivy League. My family is paying full sticker price so ill be graduating with about 100-150k of debt my parents have committed to paying 100-150k. My current plan after I graduate is to go to medical school and then get a job in either venture capital or in the pharmaceutical industry perhaps after doing a stint in management consulting. Given this, does it make sense to stay at my school due to its high price? The one big reason Im at my school currently is because it has a very good reputation for businessfinance. But if Im planning to go to grad school anyway, would it be better to just go to a cheaper state school, do really well, and then just get into a top-tier MDMBA program from a financial perspective? Im just afraid of being a debt slave for the rest of my life... I know this is really more like career advice, but this is really the only place I have left to turn to right now.EDIT: Just to clarify, this is my hypothetical career route as of now. 1. Graduate here from undergrad with a dual degree in Biology and Economics. - 2. Go to a medical school and potentially a combined MDMBA program hopefully at a top tier med school - 3. Do management consulting at a top firm like BCG or McKinsey, using my medical background to consult in the healthcare industry - 4. Use the experience to transition to some kind of corporate strategy position at a Big PharmaBiotech company and work my way up the ladder OR transition to an analystassociate position at a life scienceshealthcare venture capital firm. So to clarify, I dont want to actually practice medicine, but I do want to go to med school since I want to work in the healthcare industry.  <response>: This is a very personal decision. There are many things that should factor into where and how you spend your college years, and debtquality of education is only part of the equation. That said... I can tell you my personal experience.I met my husband in an ivy league graduate school program. He received his bachelors degree from the same institution, whereas I went to a less rigorous school. I took undergraduate-level classes at both, and they were NOT necessarily higher quality at the ivy league school. Classes are highly dependent on who is teaching them. For sure, the professors teaching classes at ivy league institutions are more respected in their fields, but that definitely does not mean they know how to teach. Many of them are focused on their research and they simply dont care that much about undergraduate classes - its like a nuisance that gets in the way of their real work. They also often dont know how to effectively introduce someone brand new to material that theyve been immersed in for decades. There are of course plenty of professors who are excellent teachers as well as researchers, but the fact is that they were hired at the ivy league school to do research first and foremost, and teaching is a secondary objective. You definitely want to end up at these places for your graduate degree, but I dont personally think its necessary for an undergraduate degree.My husband and I exited graduate school together at the height of the recession. He had six figures of debt, and I had none. I got a job immediately and he struggled to find one for over a year. Why? Im not sure, but I suspect it has to do with my level of confidence. I spent four years doing very well and graduating near the top of my class. My husband was constantly surrounded by the best of the best, and among them, he was constantly struggling to keep up and was stressed out all the time. He lost sight of the fact that just by being there he was doing well, and he started thinking that maybe he wasnt smart enough to succeed in his field. Hes an incredibly smart guy, but to this day he has confidence issues.From what hes told me, the type of people that go ivy league institutions are often out for themselves. Obviously not everyone is like that, but youre a lot more likely to encounter the cutthroat ambitious type that will throw you under the bus to get ahead. Many come from other countries and are under extreme parental pressure to do well no matter the cost. My experience was the opposite - there was a sense of community and a general desire to help your fellow students and get through it together. TL;DR: Ivy leagues arent always all theyre cracked up to be, but dont listen to me because it totally depends on your experience and what you make of it. 