Devoted to branding and building and protecting brands

So the College Board released their 2007-vintage report discussing rising tuition costs and student aid trends and guess what?  If you guessed that it’s getting more expensive, you guessed right. That the costs associated with sending the kids to college are rising at twice the rate of inflation sounds pretty dire.  Until you remember that inflation is actually pretty low today.

Every college and university has its own brand, of course.  Often, the tuition is directly proportional to the brand’s perceived value which is important to the extent that the diploma you receive becomes one of your own personal “brand attributes”. You, as an individual product of that school, to some extent enjoy the “halo” effect that the brand or reputation bestows.  This is the benefit the graduate enjoys based on the "features" of the institution.  Schools have been selling this benefit, some more blatantly than others, for a long time.  

The reality?  I’ve never hired anyone on the basis of his or her alma mater and my batting average is pretty good.  On the other hand, I’ve seen some hiring managers suffer buyer’s remorse because they relied too heavily on where their hire’s degree came from.  Think of where somebody went to school as a product “feature”.  It’s not a benefit.  So, shop wise: Interview the features, of course, but hire what you believe will likely be that person’s benefit to you – in this case, what he or she will likely contribute.