The obsession over elite schools makes even less sense if you frame it in terms of where these people are coming from.

If you had the wherewithal to do well at a lousy high school, you'll be just as able to make something of yourself at a mid-grade university.

Elite universities are important if you want to be in the "elite" clique. If you just want to make a better life for yourself, any old university will get you pretty far. One close to home will likely be a lot more relatable culturally as well. Not everyone wants to uproot their identity and go be someone else somewhere else.

Have you looked closely at the website of Wellesley College, # 1 liberal arts college in the US? They sell themselves not on the education they provide, their spiel is that as a Wellesley alumna you will be able to draw on all sorts of connections.

I agree. It’s difficult for poor kids to know what schools are a good fit for them. Least, that is my experience when I applied. I barely knew what colleges were out there.

There is an obsession among the hyper-ambitious with being the very best. Some people won't be satisfied at having a shot at being a multi-millionaire with a successful career as skilled labor or operating a modest business. They want to be multi-billionaires that rub elbows with statement. Access to pretty good schools isn't enough for them, they want access to the most elite schools that will give them the most elite social connections.

Depends on your definition of success. Since the top quintile (and especially top decile) is running away with all of the profits from the growth in the recent past, it does put them in a different league than the others.