I'd heard about this story on one of my mailing lists. A woman sues harvard claiming race and gender discrimination (layer "appearance discrimination" on top of that because the woman is supposed to be attractive). She loses the lawsuit.
Do a google search on "bobo" and "honorary degree".
Larry Bobo is one of the best social scientists in the game, and he's black. He is now at Harvard in the Department of African American Studies. You see that "honorary" degree that Bobo got from Harvard in 1997? There is no way in hell Harvard is going to hire someone with an undergraduate degree from Loyola Marymount. Ain't gonna happen.
Unless you change the rules. Like award the Loyola cat an honorary Harvard degree.
The woman was lost from day one...because she received her Master's from Simmons College. And while you can sue for race and gender discrimination (while not both simultaenously) you cannot sue for class discrimination.
Go to the right school and the world opens up. Go to the wrong one and try to get into the right networks, and in many cases the world will swallow you whole.
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