How reliable are university rankings?

[Mark44]

Do you want to say that person that obtain a degree from the top universities could be less prepared for a job and do a worst 5-years of carrier then who graduate from a not very known university?

What you quoted from Eric is more about what happens a few years into your career.

Does it help - yes, is it a guarantee - no.

Right after you graduate, you probably don't have a record of accomplishments other than your degree, so all a prospective employer has to go on is your grade point average (GPA) and supporting references and letters of recommendation.
Five years after graduation, where you graduated and your grades are less important than what you have accomplished -- that's what he is saying.

 

[Eric Bretschneider]

Exactly.

BTW: During that interview your ability to communicate will help to make you stand out. Another point: I hate interviews with candidates have no questions. Yes I will have a lot of questions I want answers to, but an interview is a two-way street. If the candidate doesn't care to do any research on my company and has no questions then they have demonstrated a lack of initiative.

 

[CrysPhys]

Right after you graduate, you probably don't have a record of accomplishments other than your degree, so all a prospective employer has to go on is your grade point average (GPA) and supporting references and letters of recommendation.
Five years after graduation, where you graduated and your grades are less important than what you have accomplished -- that's what he is saying.

With one important exception. Should you need to change career paths substantially (say from physics R&D or EE design to patent law, technical journalism, or venture capital for high-tech start-ups, a pedigree from a brand-name school such as MIT, Harvard, Oxford, or Cambridge will still help open doors, 5, 10, 20 years down the road. That's because you don't have an established track record in the new field, and supporting peripheral factors come back into play (details of GPAs and transcripts won't come into play far into the future, though).