Employers want Ivy League graduates but only if they look like past Ivy League students
My take on Forbes "Employers Are Souring On Ivy League Grads, While These 20 'New Ivies' Ascend"
Imagine a basketball recruiting agent visiting a Historically Black College & University (HBCU) and watching a college game. On the men’s team, he spots someone who plays like Tyler Kolek. On the women’s team, he eyes someone who could give Caitlin Clark a run for her money.
But he’s frustrated. He wants someone who “looks” like a basketball player — a JuJu Watkins, a Rori Harmon, a Johnell Davis or a Kadary Richmond. Someone who looks like Zachry Cheyne Edey or Cameron Christie could maybe make it, but let’s not get too crazy. After all, the NBA is 70.4% African-American and the WNBA is more than 60% of African-American women.
Why mess up a good thing?
Does that sound wildly offensive to you? It should, specifically when all of these players worked hard in the NCAA and to (potentially) excel in this career path.
Recommended Read: “Harriet Tubman’s legacy made me lose a job ~ My proudest moment of being dismissed as an editor”
Now replace basketball players with Ivy League graduates. And that same tactic is apparently what some employers are doing when it comes to hiring Ivy League graduates — or not. According to Forbes magazine, 33% of employers making hiring decisions said they are less likely to hire Ivy League graduates today than five years ago. Only 7% said they were more likely to hire them.
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As an Amazon affiliate, I earn a percentage from purchases with my referral links. I know some consumers are choosing to boycott Amazon for its DEI removal. However, after thinking about this thoroughly, I want to continue promoting cool products from small businesses, women-owned businesses and (specifically) Black-owned businesses who still feature their items on Amazon. As of the first date of Black History Month 2025, each new post will ALWAYS include a MINIMUM of one product sold by a Black-owned business. (I have visited the seller’s official site to verify that Amazon Black-owned logo.) I am (slowly) doing this with older, popular posts too. If you still choose to boycott, I 100% respect that decision.
The goal is supposedly because they want to find “great, well-rounded students in lieu of … a well-rounded class,” but there’s also the controversy over a more diverse crowd joining Ivy League schools. It’s difficult to believe that these same employers didn’t want “well-rounded” students before. So what’s the big deal about them now?
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This reminds me of 2022 when social media users and a select few celebrities decided the Emmys didn’t matter — the same year that four Black women (Zendaya, Lizzo, Sheryl Lee Ralph, and Quinta Brunson) won Emmys, a very rare occurrence even now.