You've been given this scenario a million times while applying to colleges.
A hiring manager has one spot open on their team and they're deciding between two candidates. Both have the exact same qualifications, except one went to a top-tier university, and the other went to a less prestigious school. Who are they going to choose?
Who would you pick? Be honest.
To preface, I'm not criticizing those who earned an education from a prestigious university. I'm also not basing this on personal experience but rather my opinions and observations.
I would choose the candidate from the unknown, mid-tier school.
Candidates from mid-tier universities have skills not taught in the Ivys or Big 10s of the world. Mid-tier candidates have passion, hustle and grit. For someone from a lesser-known school to get to the same professional level as a conventionally elite candidate isn’t by accident. It's because that person worked for it - and not by getting a 4.0 GPA.
Students who go to well-known schools have the opportunity to have doors open for them everywhere they go. At university-sponsored job fairs, world-class companies line up to get their attention, and once they have that, they do everything in their power to recruit the "best and brightest". Dinners, networking events, gifts, free flights to out of state interviews. For these students, it's not about if or when they're going to get an offer, it's for how much and the signing bonus that comes along with it.
These same candidates can walk into rooms at non-professional social events with those around them asking for their time to chat or pick their brain simply because of their academic background.
Having opportunities handed to them isn't the best way to describe it, but they definitely have things easier.
What's interesting is all this prestige is mostly based on grades and standardized test results. Things that don't matter in the business world.
Now let's look at the flip side.
Those who went to a lesser known university may have the grades but couldn't afford the "better" schools, prefer to be somewhere with a smaller class size or liked their programs better. Maybe other universities just wouldn't accept them because of their grades and test scores. These factors do not make them poor candidates for world class companies, it makes them better.
Large, well known companies do not attend their university job fairs. They do not receive gifts or dinners, and if they have an out of state interview, they're paying out of pocket for travel. Others around them at social events are not interested in "what they've been up to" because once they find out they've never heard of their academic institution, the disappointment in that person's voice is telling enough.
These same students are frequently looked down upon by those from better known schools. Many of them don't even see the potential of themselves because they've been labeled as "unsuccessful" before receiving a diploma. Come graduation, they're just happy to have an offer that doesn't even include a signing bonus. Because it was never on the table to begin with.
They frequent job boards, applying to companies with qualifications like "candidate must have graduated from a top-tier university". Many of the world's top companies won't even see their resume because it has been filtered out before it reaches a hiring manager.
These candidates take an unconventional approach to their careers. They network with people from all backgrounds, get extremely creative in how they reach hiring managers, and go to great lengths to just get noticed because there isn't another option.
Companies should give mid-tier university candidates more credit than they currently receive. They bring a different perspective to the table—one that isn't the same as all the others hired from the same university job fair major companies attend each year. After all, if they continue to hire from the same schools, they get the same results. There's no change.
Mid tier candidates who have reached this level work smarter. They don't mind spending extra time learning new skills to help your company. They don't judge others based on what school they attended. They're optimistic and put extra effort into their work without complaining because they're grateful someone believes in them.
We're reaching a society where traditional academia won't be relevant. Companies that aren't exploring options outside of prestigious universities are putting themselves out of business. It won't happen right now, but our near future is bringing us to that point.
I haven't read other articles about this topic, but I'm positive they exist. I'm writing this because it needs to be addressed more often. I also know that I'm wrong about this topic in many cases. However, I'm correct in believing there are several strong candidates out there who are overlooked because of their academic backgrounds.
A few of you will read this, some of you will agree, most of you will disagree, and that's ok. My hope is this topic crosses your mind in the future. The next time you take a chance on mid tier candidates, you're making an investment in your company's future.
