I pretty much agree with David here. While Ivies and a number of other private institutions are highly selective in their admissions, that doesn't mean that they do (or should) have a monopoly on quiz bowl. A large state school like Michigan or Berkeley (granted, those two are relatively selective as compared to other state schools) can summon up quite a talent pool. Smaller schools, or less selective public institutions, can still field extremely powerful teams if they have an organization that's committed to the game. I did my undergrad work at a selective private institution (MIT) and my grad work at a state school (Western Michigan), and had, IMO, equally talented teammates in both places. The WMU team in the mid-nineties was certainly competitive at the same level as many larger or more selective schools. One other thing to keep in mind is this: If high grades and test scores correlate with quiz-bowl talent (this wouldn't surprise me, since both probably also stem from a love of reading and good retention of information), then the only pertinent difference between a Harvard and a Western Michigan is that a higher percentage of Harvard students would probably do well at QB if they were inclined to play. This doesn't say anything about the *individuals* who tend to make up good teams at both kinds of institutions. A lot of highly motivated students who had terrific high school grades and SAT/ACT scores still go to state schools for financial or other personal reasons, even if they would have readily been accepted at more selective colleges. Julie
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