Line #28 UsefulNotes/IvyLeague


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2	[[UsefulNotes/FootballBowlSubdivision FBS Conferences]] ([[UsefulNotes/AtlanticCoastConferenceFootballPrograms ACC]]) ([[UsefulNotes/BigTenConferenceFootballPrograms B1G]]) ([[UsefulNotes/Big12ConferenceFootballPrograms B12]]) ([[UsefulNotes/SoutheasternConferenceFootballPrograms SEC]]) \| [[UsefulNotes/CollegiateAmericanFootballConferences FCS and Miscellaneous Teams]] (Ivy League)-]]]]]
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4	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ivy_league.png]]
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6	The Ivy League ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivy_League Wikipedia]]) is a group of eight old and well-regarded private universities in the Northeastern United States. Officially, the Ivy League is an athletic conference. Its members have a long history of participation in collegiate sports, and some of America's first sports rivalries were established at these eight schools. The Ivy League was officially established in 1954, although it had existed informally for decades prior.[[note]] The Ivy League claims the history of the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League, the first college basketball conference (founded in 1901), as its own. Every member in the the EIBL's history would eventually join the Ivy League; by 1953, the EIBL membership was identical to that of today's all-sports conference; and upon the creation of the new Ivy athletic conference, the EIBL was incorporated into it.[[/note]] Even though the Ivy League is officially a NCAA Division I conference ([[UsefulNotes/CollegiateAmericanFootball FCS for football]])[[note]]Originally a [=I-A/FBS=] conference when Division I football was split in 1978, the Ivy League, along with the Southern Conference and Southland Conference, was relegated to [=I-AA/FCS=] status in 1982[[/note]], it operates much closer to a Division III conference as none of the member schools allow athletic scholarships. In football, the league's champion technically receives an automatic invitation to the FCS playoffs; however, the league abstains from the playoffs, citing academic concerns. Also, for basketball, it was the last league that did not conduct a conference tournament; through the 2015–16 season, it instead awarded the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament to the regular season champion.[[note]]If there was a tie for first, a one-game playoff was conducted. If more than two teams were tied, a series of one-game playoffs was held. Though that number never went past three schools.[[/note]] Since the 2016–17 season, the Ivies have held conference tournaments in men's and women's basketball. Unlike most conference tournaments, the Ivy tournaments do not feature all of the league's teams; only the top four teams of each sex qualify.
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8	However, the name has much broader connotations. The Ivy League is associated with [[EliteSchoolMeansEliteBrain academic excellence]], with many people in fiction and real life dreaming of [[IvyLeagueForEveryone gaining admission to an Ivy League school]], as it is seen as a sign that one is truly the best of the best. (Admissions are highly selective, with admission rates being less—usually ''much'' less—than twenty percent.) Indeed, this was the ''real'' reason why the Ivy League was created—they felt that collegiate athletics were growing too dominated by big money and sponsorship deals, and that continuing to compete with other schools would force them to lower their academic standards.
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10	On the flip side, the Ivy League is also associated with social elitism. It is often subjected to a unique form of StrawmanU, one in which most of the students are [[RichBitch snobbish, preppy]], [[BlueBlood old-money]] [[WhiteAngloSaxonProtestant WASPs]] who are already set for life, and are only going to college to acquire a veneer of respectability (for when they become executives and investment bankers) and to get into their fathers' "old boy" networks and secret societies. Any student who isn't a member of this elite gets spit on and bossed around by them, partly because of the aforementioned elitism, and partly because most of the people who are academically gifted enough to get into an Ivy League school (without resorting to {{nepotism}}) are nerds who had already been encountering this for [[MiddleSchool twelve]] [[HighSchool years]]. Such a school will typically be the setting of a SlobsVersusSnobs plot.
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12	It's also worth noting that the mystique of the Ivy League holds less sway in parts of the country that aren't the Northeast. While people on the East Coast dream of going to Princeton or Harvard, Californians often dream of getting into Stanford, USC, UCLA, Caltech, or the University of California, Berkeley instead, while Southerners have their sights set on Vanderbilt, William & Mary, University of Virginia, Duke, Emory, Tulane, or Rice. Even people in the relatively close Midwest often aim for Northwestern, Washington University in St. Louis, Rose-Hulman, University of Michigan, The Ohio State University, Case Western, Notre Dame, or the University of Chicago instead. And even in the northeast, many of the aforementioned nerds will dream of MIT instead of the Ivies.
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14	The renown of the Ivy League is such that the name "Ivy" is also used to describe other colleges with strong academic reputations. [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Ivies "Little Ivies"]] may refer to the "Little Three" of Amherst, Wesleyan and Williams, or to a set of small and selective liberal arts colleges (mostly in the NESCAC[[note]]New England Small College Athletic Conference, part of NCAA Division III[[/note]] sporting conference). [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Ivy "Public Ivies"]] are [[UsefulNotes/AmericanEducationalSystem public universities]] that are said to provide an Ivy League-quality education at an affordable price, while [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Ivy "Southern Ivies"]] are [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin exactly what they sound like]]—in fact, there was talk in TheSixties of forming a "Magnolia Conference" of elite private Southern universities[[note]]The primary candidates for joining were Vanderbilt (in Nashville), Emory (Atlanta), Duke (Durham, NC), Tulane (New Orleans), Rice (Houston), and Southern Methodist (Dallas).[[/note]] that wanted to maintain big-ticket sports programs without cutting corners on academics, as they felt that their rivals were doing. There are even hypothetical [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Ivy_League "Black Ivies"]], the most elite HBCU (historically Black colleges and universities) schools, a list that varies among observers, but almost always includes Howard University, Tuskegee University, and the Atlanta University Center colleges (Morehouse University, Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College). Unlike the normal Ivy League, Black Ivies are more focused on undergraduate study.
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16	The eight Ivy League colleges, in the order they were founded, along with some [[SarcasmMode totally accurate]] stereotypes about each of them that [[BlatantLies totally weren't written]] [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial by their rivals' alumni]]:
17	* '''Harvard University''' in Cambridge, Massachusetts: established in 1636 (oldest university in the US). Historic religious affiliation: Congregationalist. Motto: Veritas ("Truth")
18	** Stereotype: Hyper-competitive and nerdy, with terrible sports programs[[note]]Though the men's basketball team has done well of late, with a big upset of New Mexico in the 2013 NCAA Tournament and alumnus Jeremy Lin gaining notice in the NBA.[[/note]] and a world-renowned law school. You don't need to ask someone whether they went to Harvard; [[BlaseBoast they'll tell you]]. (Specifically, they'll tell you they went to college "near Boston." It's a whole thing.)
19	* '''Yale University''' in New Haven, Connecticut: established in 1701. Historic religious affiliation: Congregationalist. Motto: האורים והתומים [=HaUrim v'HaTummim=]/Lux et veritas ("Light and truth").
20	** Stereotype: Preppy, elitist, and crawling with secret societies. Possibly [[CardCarryingVillain card-carrying villains]]. Also has a world-renowned law school, which competes aggressively with Harvard's.[[note]]As of 2022, Harvard and Yale have 4 [[UsefulNotes/AmericanCourts justices of the Supreme Court]] apiece. The 9th seat is Amy Coney Barrett, who went to Notre Dame for law school (as befits The Most Catholic justice on a court of 6 Catholics, 1 Protestant, 1 Jew, and 1 Neil Gorsuch (who has been famously cagey about whether he's a Catholic or an Episcopalian)).[[/note]]
21	* '''University of Pennsylvania''' in UsefulNotes/{{Philadelphia}}, Pennsylvania: established in 1740. Historic religious affiliation: None (officially); Society of Friends/Quaker (unofficially). (They named their sports teams the Quakers.) Motto: Leges sine moribus vanae ("Laws without morals are useless").
22	** Stereotype: Business nerds, future insider traders. Too proud of having been founded by Creator/BenjaminFranklin. More recently, unsure of whether the Penn Museum's status as being home to one of the world's best collections of Ancient Near East artifacts (including everything from Sumerian cylinder seals to Egyptian mummies) is something to be celebrated or embarrassed by.[[note]]Penn Archaeology researchers were ''unusually'' good at getting great concessions from the governments of Egypt, Iraq, and Iran in the first half of the 20th century.[[/note]] '''Never''' to be confused with Penn State.
23	* '''Princeton University''' in Princeton, UsefulNotes/NewJersey: established in 1746. Historic religious affiliation: Presbyterian. Motto: Dei sub numine viget ("Under God's power she flourishes"--though wags will tell you it means "God went to Princeton").
24	** Stereotype: Snobbish, conservative, and sports-obsessed, with more singing groups than a UsefulNotes/{{Bollywood}} film. Also takes great pains to forget that it is in New Jersey; New Jerseyans take devilish glee in reminding Princeton of where it is.
25	* '''Columbia University''' ([[UsefulNotes/TheThirteenAmericanColonies originally]] King's College) in UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, New York (more specifically Manhattan, and specifically today the Upper West Side[[note]]Originally it was in Lower Manhattan, at Trinity Church at Wall Street and Broadway; it gradually moved north until settling on the UWS at the end of the 19th century.[[/note]]): established in 1754. Historic religious affiliation: Episcopalian/Anglican. Motto: In lumine Tuo videbimus lumen ("In thy light shall we see the light").
26	** Stereotype: A [[StrawmanU Berkeley-on-the-Hudson]] filled with artsy {{hipster}}s.
27	* '''Brown University''' in Providence, Rhode Island: established in 1764. Historic religious affiliation: Baptist (mostly). Motto: In Deo Speramus ("In God we hope").
28	** Stereotype: The ButtMonkey of the Ivy League, with an allegedly lax curriculum.[[note]]They have a class called Atlantic Pirates. No joke.[[/note]] Rival to Columbia for the chief [[StrawmanU Berserkley]] of the Ivy League.
29	* '''Dartmouth College''' in Hanover, New Hampshire: established in 1769. Historic religious affiliation: Congregationalist. Motto: Vox clamantis in deserto ("The voice of one crying in the wilderness").
30	** Stereotype: A [[StrawmanU Jim Jones University]] where everybody dual-majors in Wall Street ethics and [[WackyFratboyHijinx partying]].
31	* '''Cornell University''' in Ithaca, UsefulNotes/{{New York\|State}}: established in 1865. The only one that gets support from a state government (it's not exactly public, but the State of New York provides some of its budget), the only one not among the nine [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonial_colleges colonial colleges]], and the only one to have been coeducational from its founding. Historic religious affiliation: None (actually this time). Motto: I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study.
32	** Stereotype: The other ButtMonkey of the Ivy League. The fallback school for those who couldn't get into the others and are willing to shell out extra for the Ivy League name rather than, say, the University of Michigan (another typical "safety school" for Ivy League candidates).[[note]]Ithaca's colder than Ann Arbor, so it's not the weather.[[/note]] Has a really hard engineering school, though. The safety nets under the bridges on campus may or may not have something to do with that. Also of note: The [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_C._Baker inventor of the chicken nugget taught here]] (and also created a [[https://www.thespruceeats.com/dr-bakers-original-cornell-chicken-recipe-101127 recipe for marinated grilled chicken]] that remains popular in the region decades later).
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34	Princeton, Harvard and Yale have traditionally been ranked as the top three schools in the United States for well over a century, although the precise ordering of the three varies from year to year. They are also considered among the top schools in the ''world'', as well.
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36	Important note: Neither Princeton nor Brown have law schools, nor does Princeton have a medical school.[[note]]The "University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro"—yes, the similarity to ''Series/{{House}}'' may be intentional—is associated jointly with the ''University of Pennsylvania'' Health System and with Rutgers' Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.[[/note]] In real life, someone claiming to have gone to "Princeton Law" is lying;[[note]]Unless the year is like 1870 and the person you're talking to is one of the ''seven'' graduates of Princeton's brief experiment in the 1840s and 50s in running a law school[[/note]] in fiction, "Princeton Law" and "Brown Law" are useful ways to establish a prestigious lineage for a lawyer/judge/legal scholar without tying him/her down to a real school, its records, and traditions.
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38	Humorously, UsefulNotes/AmericanFootball would not exist if not for Harvard and the Ivy League. The game was nearly banned by Harvard's president due to all of the fatalities, until a [[UsefulNotes/TheodoreRoosevelt Harvard alumnus]] stepped in, and mediated a new set of rules with representatives from Harvard, Yale, and Princeton designed to make the game safer. Incidentally, the first game of American football—which resembled a cross of [[UsefulNotes/AssociationFootball soccer]] and UsefulNotes/{{rugby\|Union}} more than the modern sport—was a UsefulNotes/NewJersey affair played between Princeton and non-Ivy colonial college[[note]]And current [[UsefulNotes/PowerFiveConferences Big Ten member]][[/note]] Rutgers on November 6, 1869. Rutgers won 6-4.
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40	Compare to UsefulNotes/{{Oxbridge}} in the UK.
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42	----
43	!Ivy League in the Media
44
45	!!Harvard
46	* Multiple presidents and relatives of presidents have gone to Harvard, either for undergrad or for an advanced degree.
47	* Harvard is the setting for the book and film ''Film/LoveStory''. Due to the damage filming for both ''Love Story'' and the 1980 film ''A Small Circle of Friends'' caused the campus, Harvard generally does not allow filming on its campus.
48	** An exception to this rule was ''Film/WithHonors'' (1994), made by a Harvard alumnus who knew the right buttons to push, and convinced the school that the film's plot would put Harvard in a good light. That movie went off without a hitch or damage.
49	* Harvard Law School is the setting for the film ''Film/ThePaperChase''.
50	* The Law School is also the setting of ''Film/LegallyBlonde''. Yes.
51	* Quentin Compson, in Creator/WilliamFaulkner's ''Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury'', attends Harvard.
52	* The early parts of ''Film/TheSocialNetwork'', true to life, were set at Harvard. (Less true to life, these scenes were mostly filmed at [[CaliforniaDoubling Johns Hopkins University]] or on sets.)
53	* ''Film/TheAdventuresOfBuckarooBanzaiAcrossThe8thDimension'': Buckaroo Banzai got his medical degree from Harvard.
54	* The title character of ''Series/TheAdventuresOfBriscoCountyJr'', despite his {{Steampunk}}/[[TheWestern Western]] adventures, was a Harvard-educated lawyer.
55	* Sara Sidle on ''Series/{{CSI}}'' is a Harvard grad.
56	* "Film/TheCuriousCaseOfBenjaminButton" (the original story) has the titular character go to Harvard after Yale, his father's alma mater kicks him out over disbelief over his age.
57	* In the video game ''VideoGame/PlantsVsZombies'', the upgrade plant Cob Cannon attended Harvard.
58	* In one episode of ''Series/GilligansIsland'', after an enraged outburst of gibberish from an apeman ([[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boola_Boola "Boola boola!"]], Harvard grad [[UpperClassTwit Thurston Howell III]] comments that the fellow "must be a ''Yale'' man!"
59	* Mr. Peabody of ''[[WesternAnimation/MrPeabodyAndSherman Peabody's Improbable History]]'' is a graduate of Harvard.
60	* In ''VideoGame/AfterTheEndAPostApocalypticAmerica'', Harvard's libraries still exist in some capacity over 600 years after the end of civilisation, and are known to the Occultists of New England as "the Crimson Library".
61	* Peter of ''ComicStrip/FoxTrot'' mentions a few times in the strip's early days about planning to apply there.
62	* ''WebAnimation/RedVsBlue''
63	** Grif says he's a Harvard man in the Columbus Day PSA. Canon implies he actually went to Ithacha College.
64	** The "Cultrual Appreciation" PSA implies Caboose of all people is a graduate of Harvard and that it was his back-up school, though even he seems confused on how that happened.
65	* In ''Series/{{Suits}}'', the main characters' law firm (initially known as Pearson Hardman before going through a variety of name changes) is known for being a top New York firm that only hires legal associates from Harvard Law School. A major source of drama in the show is Mike and Harvey's attempts to keep secret the fact that Mike never went to Harvard (or any law school, for that matter).
66	* A rare mention in Japanese media: In ''Videogame/YakuzaLikeADragon'' it's stated that Tokyo Governor and BigBad Ryo Aoki studied Political Economics at Harvard.
67	* James "Toofer" Spurlock of ''Series/ThirtyRock'' is an alumnus. JustifiedTrope due to how the ''Harvard Lampoon'' has turned out many comedy writers, including Creator/ConanOBrien and ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' head writer Colin Jost.
68	* In ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' Johnny Rico's father tells him he's going to Harvard rather than enter federal service, while fellow recruit Shizumi says that federal service will allow him to pay his tuition to attend it afterwards.
69	* Emily of ''Webcomic/{{Misfile}}'' believed she was destined for Harvard since preschool. The events of the comic have her question if it's truly what she wants or what her EducationMama wants.
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71	!!Yale
72	* In Creator/FScottFitzgerald's ''Literature/TheGreatGatsby'', both Nick Carraway and Tom Buchanan are Yale men.
73	* ComicStrip/FlashGordon is a Yale graduate.
74	* Classic DimeNovel character Frank Merriwell is a Yale man.
75	* The later seasons of ''Series/GilmoreGirls'' feature Rory applying to and then attending Yale. Additionally, Rory's best friend Paris and grandfather Richard both go/went to Yale.
76	* Jamie (Helen Hunt) in ''Series/MadAboutYou'' is a Yale graduate.
77	* As is Mr. Burns in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.
78	* Niles on ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' is an alumnus of Yale, as is David Hyde Pierce, who plays him. As part of the rivalry between him and his brother, Frasier attended Harvard.
79	* Sideshow Bob and C. Montgomery Burns of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' both went to Yale.
80	* Troy the Janitor from ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' went to Yale.
81	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'', Yale's prehistoric counterpart is "Shale University," archrival of "Prinstone University."
82	* A cartoon in ''Magazine/TheNewYorker'' once depicted two chic young women conversing at a party, one of them cheerfully commenting "I'm a Yale man, myself."
83	* Leigh Bardugo's ''Literature/AlexStern'' novels are set at Yale and revolve around its secret societies.
84
85	!!University of Pennsylvania
86	* Dennis and Dee Reynolds of ''Series/ItsAlwaysSunnyInPhiladelphia'' both studied psychology at [=UPenn=], but Dee didn't graduate, and Dennis is... well... Dennis.
87	* The college scenes of ''Film/TransformersRevengeOfTheFallen'' were filmed in the Quad, probably the most recognizable part of Penn's campus... which the movie passes off as Princeton. Even in pop-culture, the Penn-Princeton rivalry is pretty one-sided.
88	* Andrew Beckett in ''Film/{{Philadelphia}}'' is a Penn Law graduate.
89
90	!!Princeton
91	* Series/TheFreshPrinceOfBelAir:
92	** Will and Carton meet with an admissions counselor. Will impresses him by [[AwesomenessByAnalysis instantly solving a Rubik's Cube]] and is admitted.
93	** Carlton's conflicts are resolved when he successfully transfers into Princeton in the series finale.
94	* Creator/FScottFitzgerald's first novel, ''Literature/ThisSideOfParadise'', centers around a Princeton student ([[AuthorAvatar based on Fitzgerald himself]]), and spends a fair amount of time on the campus.
95	* The setup of ''Film/AcrossTheUniverse2007'' involves Jude traveling from Liverpool to find his father at Princeton—where he meets and befriends Max.
96	* The title character of ''Series/DoogieHowserMD'' graduated from Princeton at age 10.
97	* In the episode "Flintstone of Prinstone" of ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'', Fred briefly attends "Prinstone University".
98	* President Charles Logan of ''Series/TwentyFour'' is a Princeton grad.
99	* According to ''Film/BatmanBegins'', Bruce Wayne went to Princeton but dropped out.
100	* Although ''Series/CharlesInCharge'' took place in New Brunswick, NJ, home of Rutgers University, Charles ended up a graduate student at Princeton (which is 20 minutes away down Route 27).
101	* Joel in ''Film/RiskyBusiness'' (Tom Cruise) is trying to get ''into'' Princeton over the course of the film.
102	* From the first episode of ''Series/TheCosbyShow'', daughter Sondra was attending Princeton; she eventually graduated. She also met her husband Elvin Tibideaux there.
103	* The title character of ''Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen'' by H. Beam Piper, Calvin Morrison, had been a theology student at Princeton, but dropped out to enlist in the Army during the Korean War.
104	* Dr. Manhattan of ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}'', in his pre-superpowered identity as John Osterman, attended Princeton for ten years, finally leaving with a Ph.D. in Physics in 1958.
105	* The character "Princeton" from ''Theatre/AvenueQ''.
106	* ''Film/ABeautifulMind'' is in large part set and filmed at Princeton, which is where the real John Nash studied and worked until he was killed in a 2015 auto accident.
107	* This exchange in ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS8E16BrotherFromAnotherSeries Brother From Another Series]]":
108	-->'''Sideshow Bob:''' Oh, come now! You wanted to be Krusty's sidekick since you were five! What about the buffoon lessons? The four years at clown college?\
109	'''Cecil:''' I'll thank you not to refer to Princeton that way.
110	* [[Series/TheWestWing Sam Seaborn]] went to Princeton. It was his Secret Service code name for a while.
111	* ''Film/ACinderellaStory'': Sam and her love interest Austin intend to go there.
112
113	!!Columbia
114	* In the Creator/SamRaimi ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'', Peter Parker attends Columbia. (In the comics and most adaptations, he attends the fictitious "Empire State University".)
115	* Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} went to Columbia Law school.
116	** As did Marshall Eriksen from ''Series/HowIMetYourMother''.
117	* UpperClassTwit Nate Archibald from ''Literature/GossipGirl'' goes there.
118	* In ''Series/TheSopranos'', Tony's daughter Meadow goes to Columbia.
119	* Music/NellieMcKay's song "Columbia is Bleeding", a ProtestSong against animal testing, detailing the foibles of the school's students, unaware of what's happening to the animals in the lab.
120	* ''Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}}'': Drs. Peter Venkman, Ray Stanz, and Egon Spengler started out as parapsychology professors at Columbia before being dismissed by the Dean himself and launching their paranormal investigation business. In ''Film/GhostbustersII'', Dana Barrett finds Egon doing research at Columbia again.
121
122	!!Brown
123	* Brian from ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' attended Brown, but dropped out one class short of graduating. In the episode "Brian Goes Back to College", he returns to complete his education (unsuccessfully).
124	* The much-loathed Microsoft Office Assistant "Clippy" has a biography that claims he has a degree in art-semiotics from Brown.
125	* Elliot from ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' attended Brown.
126	* Several characters from ''Series/TwentyFour'' attended Brown, including Audrey Raines and Bill Buchanan.
127	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'', Lisa has an ImagineSpot where, having received a zero on a test, Brown remains the only Ivy League university open to her.
128	** To cement Brown's ButtMonkey status, the same ImagineSpot has Lisa imagining that Otto, the perpetually-stoned metal-listening Springfield Elementary bus driver, not only went to Brown, but almost got tenure.
129	* In ''Film/IronMan1'', when an interviewer's line of questioning makes it clear she fancies herself an anti-war activist, Tony Stark guesses her alma mater as [[StrawmanU Berkeley]], and she corrects him to Brown.
130
131	!!Dartmouth
132	* Michael Corleone of ''Film/TheGodfather'' and its sequels is a Dartmouth graduate.
133	* "Trapper John" [=MacIntyre=] of ''Series/{{Mash}}'' and ''Series/TrapperJohnMD'' attended Dartmouth.
134	* Meredith Grey of ''Series/GreysAnatomy'' is a Dartmouth graduate. Shonda Rhimes, the show's creator, is a Dartmouth alumna herself, and David Rosen, a character on her show ''Scandal'', also seems to be a Dartmouth grad—he and Mer have the same t-shirt.
135	* The fictional version of himself portrayed by Creator/StephenColbert on ''Series/TheColbertReport'' attended Dartmouth. (The real Colbert went to [[UsefulNotes/PowerFiveConferences Northwestern]] in UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}.)
136	* ''Film/AnimalHouse'', while set at the fictional Faber College, was largely based on writer Chris Miller's experiences at Dartmouth and [[WackyFratboyHijinx its fraternity culture]].
137	* While serving time in prison, Mr. Burns of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' is a Yale graduate and is afraid of his cellmate because the latter attended Dartmouth.
138
139	!!Cornell
140	* Sideshow Mel of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' attended Cornell.
141	* The eponymous ''Film/CitizenKane'' was expelled from Cornell.
142	* In ''Series/TheOfficeUS'', the terminally preppy Andy constantly brings up the fact that he went to Cornell.
143	* President Kirkman is shown wearing a Cornell hoodie throughout the pilot of Series/DesignatedSurvivor.
144	* Professor Frink of ''The Simpsons'' considers Cornell the worst Ivy League university, is ashamed of having attended it, and only got accepted in exchange for not exposing the flaws on their admission exam.
145
146	!!Mixed/Multiple
147	* Creator/HPLovecraft:
148	** In "Literature/TheCallOfCthulhu", George Gammell Angell is an emeritus professor at Brown.
149	** Miskatonic University, frequently seen or mentioned in the Franchise/CthulhuMythos, is modeled on Brown University.
150	** Harvard's Widener Library houses a copy of the ''Necronomicon''.
151	* In ''Literature/DecadesOfDarkness'', WordOfGod [[http://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showpost.php?p=4980566&postcount=3843 holds]] that the {{alternate\|History}} Ivy League covers nine schools in New England[[note]]In the ''[=DoD=]'' [[TheVerse 'verse]], New England includes the Canadian Maritimes, UsefulNotes/{{New\|YorkState}} [[UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity York]], UsefulNotes/NewJersey, UsefulNotes/{{Michigan}} (minus the Upper Peninsula, which is Canadian), and parts of northern Indiana and UsefulNotes/{{Ohio}}, in addition to the six states that make up the region in RealLife.[[/note]] instead of eight in the US. Missing from the list are [=UPenn=] (Pennsylvania is part of the *US), Princeton (which didn't survive [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarI the North American War]]), and Cornell (which was founded half a century after the PointOfDivergence, and so doesn't exist in the ''[=DoD=]'' 'verse); added to the list are Union College in Schenectady, King's College in Nova Scotia, and the fictional Brunswick College in New Brunswick and Clinton University in Rochester.
152	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheFlintstones'', both Prinstone and Shale are members of the esteemed "Poison Ivy League."
153	* In ''WebComic/KevinAndKell'' the Ivy League was mentioned, and it was once apparently quite literal: they only accepted species that ate ivy until diversity became an issue.
154	* [[Series/TheWestWing Josh Lyman]] went to Harvard and Yale.
155	----
156	!Ivy League in RealLife:
157
158	!!Harvard
159	* UsefulNotes/JohnAdams was the first Harvard grad to become president.
160	* Other Harvard alumni who became President of the United States: John Adams and his son John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes, George W. Bush (Harvard MBA), Barack Obama (Harvard Law School) and Presidential badass UsefulNotes/TheodoreRoosevelt.
161	* Creator/RalphWaldoEmerson attended Harvard.
162	* Creator/NataliePortman is a Harvard alumna. She parodied this in a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v8e6-IeQ0aw famous]] ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' Digital Short.
163	* Creator/TommyLeeJones went to Harvard; his roommate was UsefulNotes/AlGore.
164	** Erich Segal, author of ''Film/LoveStory'', also attended and later taught at Harvard. He admitted years later to modelling its protagonist Oliver on a fusion of Jones and Gore.
165	* Author Creator/WilliamSBurroughs, Harvard 1936.
166	* Civil Rights leader W.E.B. Du Bois was Harvard 1890.
167	* Creator/HoratioAlger, Harvard 1852.
168	* Creator/AlFranken, Harvard 1973.
169	* Professional wrestler and real-life lawyer Wrestling/DavidOtunga.
170	* Former professional wrestler Wrestling/ChristopherNowinski, now an activist on concussions in sports.[[note]]Nowinski was forced to retire from Wrestling/{{WWE}} due to a series of concussions.[[/note]]
171	* Jeremy Lin, [[UsefulNotes/NationalBasketballAssociation NBA]] journeyman (also with stints in China and the NBA's minor league, the G League).
172	* Creator/RashidaJones graduated in 1997. She initially intended to be a lawyer, but after the OJ Simpson trial, decided to become an actor.
173	* Jackie Fox, former bass guitarist for Music/TheRunaways, graduated from Harvard Law in 1991—making her a classmate of UsefulNotes/BarackObama. By then, she had long since reverted to using her birth name of Jacqueline Fuchs.
174	* Creator/EdwardGorey: Harvard 1950, though he got a degree in French rather than art.
175	* Creator/BJNovak, Harvard 2001.
176	* Rivers Cuomo enrolled at Harvard in 1995, after Music/{{Weezer}}'s successful debut album, to study ClassicalMusic composition, but CreatorBreakdown led him to drop out and re-enroll several times, switching his major to English in the process. He finally completed his BA in 2006.
177
178	!!Yale
179	* Creator/JodieFoster, Yale 1984.
180	* UsefulNotes/GeorgeHWBush
181	* Both UsefulNotes/BillClinton and his wife UsefulNotes/{{Hillary\|Clinton}} attended Yale Law School.
182	* As did J.D. Vance, current junior U.S. Senator from Ohio and best known as author of ''Literature/HillbillyElegy''. A good chunk of the book recounts his experiences at Yale Law.
183	* UsefulNotes/GeorgeWBush attended Yale and was a member of Skull and Bones.
184	* UsefulNotes/JohnKerry attended Yale and was a member of Skull and Bones. In 2004, he ran against fellow Bonesman George W. Bush for President.
185	* Legendary OSS/CIA spymaster James Jesus Angleton was a Yale man.
186	* Creator/VincentPrice held a degree in art history from Yale (class of 1933).
187	* Creator/GeneSiskel, Yale 1967 (BA in philosophy).
188
189	!!University of Pennsylvania
190	* Creator/BenjaminFranklin was one of the university's founders.
191	* Creator/EzraPound, revolutionary poet turned pro-Mussolini propagandist, attended the University of Pennsylvania.
192	* UsefulNotes/DonaldTrump (class of 1968), along with many members of his family, went to Penn.
193	* Creator/WilliamCarlosWilliams was a Penn graduate.
194	* Creator/PhilipRoth was a professor of comparative literature at Penn until 1991.
195	* Creator/VanessaBayer, class of 2004.
196
197	!!Princeton
198	* Creator/FScottFitzgerald attended Princeton.
199	* As did Creator/JimmyStewart, [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Logan Joshua Logan]], Creator/JoseFerrer, Wayne Rogers (''Series/{{MASH}}''), Creator/BrookeShields, Creator/DavidDuchovny, [[http://www.amazon.com Jeff Bezos]], Creator/DeanCain, and First Lady Michelle Obama. In fact, the last five were all at Princeton during the ''same four-year span'' between 1982 and 1985.
200	* The Battle of Princeton (January 3, 1777) was an important rebel victory in UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution. Damage from cannon balls can still be seen in Nassau Hall (Princeton's administration building).
201	* Princeton's Blair Hall and its famous arch appear at the beginning of the ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'' short film "Prose and Cons" ("Kill my lan'lord, kill my lan'lord") from the 1980-81 season.
202	* Author/adventurer/lecturer Creator/RichardHalliburton was Princeton Class of 1922.
203	* Bestselling author Creator/JodiPicoult is Princeton '87.
204	* Playwright and UsefulNotes/{{Nobel\|PrizeInLiterature}} Laureate Creator/EugeneONeill, Princeton Class of 1910.
205	* Musician/playwright Gene Lewin of the band {{Groovelily}} attended Princeton.
206	* Presidents UsefulNotes/WoodrowWilson and UsefulNotes/JamesMadison went to Princeton. Wilson was also a professor there several times (he's the only President with a Ph.D.), and he served as the President of Princeton from 1902 to 1910, when he used the post to springboard himself to Governor of UsefulNotes/NewJersey.
207	** UsefulNotes/GroverCleveland hoped to attend Princeton, but he had to enter the workforce when his father died. He became a trustee of the university after his second presidential term, serving at the same time as (and butting heads with) Wilson. Such was his influence that the tower of the Graduate College was named for him, and both his son and grandson graduated from the university.
208	* Ralph Nader, Princeton 1955.
209	* Queen Noor of Jordan, born Lisa Halaby, Princeton 1974.
210	* Hall of Fame basketball player and former US Senator Bill Bradley is Princeton Class of 1965.
211	* Syngman Rhee, first president of UsefulNotes/SouthKorea, Princeton 1910.
212	* Nobel laureate John Nash (of ''Film/ABeautifulMind'' fame) did his graduate work at and continued to do mathematics at Princeton until his death in a 2015 auto accident.
213	* President Obama is a fan of Princeton ladies. Besides marrying one (as noted above), he's put two alumnae—Sonia Sotomayor '76 and Elena Kagan '81—on the Supreme Court.
214	** Sotomayor is a particularly prominent alumna because the University looks to her as an authority on diversity matters. She supplied the school with a new informal motto—Princeton in the Nation's Service and the Service of Humanity—which was adopted when the University reexamined Woodrow Wilson's legacy in 2015.
215
216	!!Columbia
217	* UsefulNotes/AlexanderHamilton attended Columbia when it was still called King's College.
218	* UsefulNotes/DwightDEisenhower served as president of the university before becoming President of the United States.
219	* OSS founder William Joseph "Wild Bill" Donovan was a Columbia graduate.
220	* Rider Strong (Shawn Hunter on ''Series/BoyMeetsWorld'') went to Columbia.
221	* Creator/EricaJong holds an M.A. from Columbia (with a BA from Barnard—which for complicated historical reasons both is and is not a unit of Columbia).
222	** Creator/JoanRivers was another Barnard graduate (class of 1954).
223
224	!!Brown
225	* The personal papers of Creator/HPLovecraft are in the John Hay Library at Brown University.
226	* Creator/SJPerelman attended Brown.
227	* Composer/musician Music/WendyCarlos, Brown 1962.
228	* Mary Chapin Carpenter, Brown 1981.
229	* Actress Laura Linney is Brown 1986.
230	* Actress Leelee Sobieski attended Brown but never graduated.
231	* Actress Creator/EmmaWatson graduated from Brown in 2014, with a degree in English Literature. She took time off here and there for personal and professional reasons.
232	* Creator/JohnKrasinski, Brown 2001.
233
234	!!Dartmouth
235	* Theodore Geisel, aka Creator/DrSeuss, went to Dartmouth, and in fact his book ''Literature/GreenEggsAndHam'' was inspired by an all-green breakfast served to freshmen during his time there.
236	* Thorne Smith, author of ''Literature/{{Topper}}'' and numerous other books, as well as the grandfather of actress Creator/CourtneyThorneSmith, attended Dartmouth but dropped out in 1912.
237	* Anthropologist Joseph Campbell, author of ''Literature/TheHeroWithAThousandFaces'', is considered class of 1926 at Dartmouth although he never graduated.
238	* [[Series/TheMindyProject Mindy Kaling]] graduated in 2001.
239	* Dr. Samuel Conway, known to the UsefulNotes/FurryFandom as Uncle Kage and is the chair of Anthrocon, went to Dartmouth.
240
241	!!Cornell
242	* Frank Morgan, better known as Film/TheWizardOfOz, attended Cornell from 1908-1909, but dropped out.
243	* Series/BillNyeTheScienceGuy has both a Bachelor's and a Master's in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell, and was a professor there from 2001 to 2006.
244	* Creator/BillMaher of ''Series/PoliticallyIncorrect'', Cornell 1978.
245	* Creator/ChristopherReeve, Cornell 1974.
246	* Creator/CarlSagan was a professor at Cornell from 1968 to 1996.
247	* Creator/JohnCleese has been a visiting professor at Cornell since 1998.
248	* Creator/ToniMorrison received an MA there in 1955.
249	* Creator/VladimirNabokov also taught in Cornell in the fifties, whose students there includes Creator/ThomasPynchon and Creator/JoannaRuss. He would later satirize his experiences there in ''Literature/{{Pnin}}''.
250	* Creator/KurtVonnegut was a undergrad in Cornell until he joined the US Army in 1943.
251	* Creator/KeithOlbermann is a Cornell grad, with a BA in 1979. In order to graduate, he had to take 28 credits his last semester, which the University [[LoopholeAbuse had never thought to ban]]. In his own words:
252	-->'''Olbermann:''' Did you know you can sweat from your eyelids?
253
254	!!Mixed/Multiple
255	* UsefulNotes/JohnFKennedy enrolled at Princeton, but was forced to leave due to illness; despite resuming and completing his education at Harvard, he is still regarded as a member of his original Princeton class by the University and alumni.
256	* UsefulNotes/FranklinDRoosevelt attended both Harvard University and Columbia Law School.
257	* UsefulNotes/BarackObama, Columbia 1983[[note]]He initially started at Occidental College but transferred to Columbia after his sophomore year.[[/note]] and Harvard Law 1991.
258	* Creator/DavidDuchovny's B.A. was from Princeton, his M.A. from Yale.
259	* [[Series/HomeImprovement Jonathan Taylor Thomas]], after he quit acting, studied philosophy and history at Harvard, and graduated from Columbia's School of General Studies in 2010.
260	* UsefulNotes/AndrewYang, who joined CNN as a commentator after bowing out of the 2020 Democratic presidential race: Brown 1996 and Columbia Law 1999.
261	----

Context UsefulNotes / IvyLeague