As a student at an Ivy League institution, I have been exposed to a vast number of people who differ from me—whether that be through race, gender, religion, political affiliation, etc. Throughout my time at Cornell, I have learned a great deal about the nature of people, both at school and in my outside life. I have worked hard and am greatly honored to attend such a prestigious institution such as Cornell, but I think something needs to be said about the so-called Ivy League Syndrome and the stigma of attending an Ivy League institution.

While I am proud to attend an Ivy League institution, there is a certain level of discomfort I experience whenever I discuss where I go to school. I have experienced a wide variety of responses from people when I reveal I go to an Ivy League, ranging from “Wow, you must be really smart!” to “Oh, really?” with a slight tilt of the head. I’m not really sure which response is better at this point. While the “You must be really smart” comment surely is not intended to offend, I get annoyed at this immediate assumption. While it may seem like a minor thing, this assumption drastically undermines all of the effort I put towards getting to (and staying) where I am today. And then we have the “Oh, really?” response—those people who are surprised to hear the news because they had no idea/didn’t think you were so smart. When I tell you where I go to school, I am not trying to appear or sound better than you. I am not trying to brag. It is frustrating that attending an Ivy immediately warrants this stigma of “Hi, I’m better than you."

This assumed superiority complex plays into the concept of Ivy League Syndrome. This syndrome, which luckily is not contagious, consists of the personal mantra that you yourself are better than those around you. This syndrome can manifest itself in any environment, inside or outside of the classroom. I am not entirely sure where this feeling of superiority stems from, considering we all attend the same university. Is your GPA better than mine? Probably. Does that mean you can talk down to me? No. We all learn differently and have our various strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes all it takes is one bad class to tank your GPA. While grades are important, they should not dictate how we are treated by those around us.