An elitist term used to denote schools that are relatively less selective and thus generally seen as less prestigious within the Ivy League. These schools are Brown, University of
Pennsylvania, Dartmouth, and Cornell.
Admission Rates in
2021:
Harvard, 3.4%
Columbia, 3.7%
Princeton, 4%
Yale, 4.6%
Brown, 5.4%
University of Pennsylvania, 5.7%
Dartmouth, 6.2%
Cornell, 14.1% (
2020)
Lauren Rivera, a professor at the Northwestern Kellogg School of Management, mentions in her publication "Ivies, Extracurriculars, and Exclusion: Elite Employers' Use of Educational Credentials," that "Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, and University of Pennsylvania (general studies) were frequently described as 'second tier' schools that were filled primarily with candidates who 'didn’t get in' to a
super-elite school."
As the quote implies, the Wharton School, which is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, is generally excluded from the lower
ivy designation as an exception.
