# Does Alma Mater Namedropping Impress You? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 3, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802 "2012-05-03T23:04:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/21 "2012-05-04T01:35:57Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I suppose I could Google all of this, but (as a Canadian) I’ve never known what any of this means. > > What does all of this mean? (Alma Mater?) And why would it matter anyway? OK, yeah, so it means the school you went to. Jesus Christ. “Hey, what school did you go to?” That’s what we’d say. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/22 "2012-05-04T01:44:40Z")
I rarely care at all, but it depends on the context in which it comes up. Bragging is bragging, though, which already tells me more than where they received their diploma. Although, it’s not an uncommon question; I’ve been asked by various people and co-workers all the time, but I never went to college, so I just spit out two random letters and add a “U”. Okay, no I don’t, but I might start. ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/23 "2012-05-04T01:47:56Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > OK, yeah, so it means the school you went to. Jesus Christ. > > “Hey, what school did you go to?” That’s what we’d say. Did I impress you with my big fancy words? 😛 I personally like “school” as a verb. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/24 "2012-05-04T01:49:11Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > OK, yeah, so it means the school you went to. Jesus Christ. > > “Hey, what school did you go to?” That’s what we’d say. In the US, we use Latin to sound smarter. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/25 "2012-05-04T01:50:16Z")
> [@The Hamster King](#): > > I was admitted to Harvard and turned them down. > > I got a call from the guy who interviewed me asking if I was crazy. > [@Zsofia](#): > > It depends. Harvard, no, but MIT, maybe. I never applied to Harvard, but I did to MIT, and I turned them down. They didn’t think I was crazy. Or at least no one called me to tell me they thought I was. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/26 "2012-05-04T01:55:49Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > I suppose I could Google all of this, but (as a Canadian) I’ve never known what any of this means. > > What does all of this mean? (Alma Mater?) And why would it matter anyway? In the US, “Alma Mater” usually means the place a person got their Bachelor’s degree. It is common to be emotionally attached to that school, and many alumni wear or display school insignia, some support the school financially (and the alumni office will give you frequent “hints” to do so), and visit often, especially if they live nearby or will stop by when traveling. And the high school you went to is meaningless unless it was an uber elite private school, and even if it was, once you get a degree, high school loses 99% of its relevance. _Nobody_ cares what public/state high school you attended, and even people who went to the same high school aren’t _really_ that interested after their early 20’s. It’s just not important. ---
**Author:** ![BTEzra04](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9f8e36/32.png) [@BTEzra04](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BTEzra04)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/27 "2012-05-04T01:56:34Z")
My high school barely had 200 people in its graduating class, so it wouldn’t impress anyone. Some of the other schools in the state, known for killer high school quizbowl, might impress me a bit. As for college, with regards to my field, yes, it would impress me. We’re number one in the nation for one of my school’s master’s degrees. I’m an undergrad, but the master’s program was the original reason why I picked going here. ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/28 "2012-05-04T01:57:40Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > In the US, “Alma Mater” usually means the place a person got their Bachelor’s degree. It is common to be emotionally attached to that school, and many alumni wear or display school insignia, some support the school financially (and the alumni office will give you frequent “hints” to do so), and visit often, especially if they live nearby or will stop by when traveling. Actually, my high school song has “alma mater” in the lyrics. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/29 "2012-05-04T01:59:09Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > in the us, we use latin to sound smarter. semper ubi sub ubi! ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/30 "2012-05-04T02:16:07Z")
> [@living\_in\_hell](#): > > Actually, my high school song has “alma mater” in the lyrics. 😕 Many high schools have an alma mater (school song, usually VERY sappy, intended to make the graduates cry at commencement) and a fight song. Alma Mater is Latin for “nourishing mother” and can be any school from which a person has graduated. It typically means college. “Where desert sands and mountains, Meet beneath the Western skies. 'Tis there my heart forever yearns…” Dum de dum de dum de dum… That’s all I can remember from my high school alma mater. I don’t get teary over it. I think it’s horribly corny. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![ecoaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/85e7bf/32.png) [@ecoaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ecoaster)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/31 "2012-05-04T02:18:07Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > **Hamster** -You seem to have had a valid reason. **ecoaster** -Was your friend in a similiar situation, or just unwilling to deal with people’s opinions, thus undercutting his future? My friend was from Cambridge (MA). He didn’t want to go to the local school, he wanted to go far away and get his bachelors elsewhere. Funny thing is, he went to Harvard for grad school. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/32 "2012-05-04T02:27:39Z")
So, all the Beach Boys songs about being true to your school, and what not, are true, eh? I seriously doubt that affinity exists elsewhere. Well, maybe for exclusive Universities, but High School? As if. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/33 "2012-05-04T02:30:02Z")
**ecoaster** -GREAT reason! Wanting to go away for school is perfectly reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/34 "2012-05-04T02:39:41Z")
Nobody cares what high school you went to. 98% of the time, that’s just a function of where your parents live/what they can afford. Big whoop. Nobody cares what undergrad you went to, except as interesting trivia. Your personal characteristics have slightly more to do with what undergrad you went to, but not much. At age 18, you just haven’t had enough time to do stuff independently in your life, so all undergrad can do is measure if you got good grades in high school, which is really just a small thing in a small part of your life. In any case, in many schools up to 25% of admitted students are athletes or legacies. Grad school can matter. I certainly know the top X grad schools in my field, and I have an idea of what kind of student they admit, what their philosophy is, and what professors they may have worked with. Most schools in my field require significant personal achievement and work experience prior to admissions, so you can know that people from these programs really are the cream of the crop. ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/35 "2012-05-04T02:42:54Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > So, all the Beach Boys songs about being true to your school, and what not, are true, eh? > > I seriously doubt that affinity exists elsewhere. Well, maybe for exclusive Universities, but High School? As if. Careful, the poster below you may say you are insecure about your education. :rolleyes: I could tell you where I went to high school but it wouldn’t fit with my disgruntled jealous complex that everyone had a better edjimicashun than me. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/36 "2012-05-04T03:03:48Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > I was admitted to Harvard and turned them down. > > I got a call from the guy who interviewed me asking if I was crazy. I told him I wanted to study engineering and I’d gotten an offer from a different school with a better program. > > I know one other person in the “turned down Harvard” club. We had a good snicker once about people who flaunt their academic credentials. I’m in this club: I turned down MIT. It’s because I’m lazy and don’t like the cold, though. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/37 "2012-05-04T03:20:49Z")
That’s as good a reason as any. And no I am not hijacking my own thread. I’m serious; not everyone likes weather in the Northeast and if you aren’t happy, what’s the point of staying somewhere? ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/38 "2012-05-04T05:06:34Z")
I’m surprised anyone even thought the question could be referring to high school. It’s not like there are a bunch of famous high schools (in the US anyway - I think the UK is different?). I might ask where someone where they went to high school, but only as a way of asking where their formative years were spent. Re. college, “namedropping” implies someone needlessly working the name of their college into conversations for the purpose of impressing others. That always backfires with me, and I will think of said namedropper as a pompous ass. If the subject comes up naturally, then yes - of course I’ll sometimes be impressed. Why not? Getting into some schools can be really tough, and in addition to resources and luck it typically takes intelligence, ambition, and drive. It’s obnoxious if someone brags about it, but if you find out someone did well at something hard like that there’s nothing wrong with being impressed. ---
**Author:** ![living\_in\_hell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3d9bf3/32.png) [@living\_in\_hell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/living_in_hell)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/39 "2012-05-04T05:26:20Z")
> [@Rodgers01](#): > > I’m surprised anyone even thought the question could be referring to high school. It’s not like there are a bunch of famous high schools (in the US anyway - I think the UK is different?). I might ask where someone where they went to high school, but only as a way of asking where their formative years were spent. > > Re. college, “namedropping” implies someone needlessly working the name of their college into conversations for the purpose of impressing others. That always backfires with me, and I will think of said namedropper as a pompous ass. > > If the subject comes up naturally, then yes - of course I’ll sometimes be impressed. Why not? Getting into some schools can be really tough, and in addition to resources and luck it typically takes intelligence, ambition, and drive. It’s obnoxious if someone brags about it, but if you find out someone did well at something hard like that there’s nothing wrong with being impressed. There are absolutely elitist secondary schools–one year at many of them costs more than 4 years at college. And they can have just as competitive an admissions process. Unfortunately, school is not always about “intelligence, ambition, and drive,” as people often have “resources” which include legacy. I agree with most everything else you wrote here, as well as what was written in another thread by someone who obtained both a masters and a doctorate from Harvard. It’s a shame that people should feel inferior when discussing their school. But then again, evTwhatever thinks I have some inferiority complex. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2012, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-alma-mater-namedropping-impress-you/620802/40 "2012-05-04T05:40:40Z")
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