Reg mashup rates CompSci unis for books, booze and boogie

Re: Fewest Tokens

I never got the multiple access working, though.

Modern approaches rely on MIMO for that.

Re: what has admission difficulty got to do with it?

Presumably the same logic as selling an iPhone for £750, which also seems to work.

In other words, you're suggesting that a spot at a university can be a Veblen good¹, where demand increases with higher cost.² That's likely true; in fact, it's almost inevitable, since demand is often taken as a sign of quality for scarce goods. (That's why artificial scarcity is a useful marketing tactic.)

But there may be contributing factors. I've studied at five programs in three US universities, graduate and undergraduate, and taught at a couple. My wife is the director of one of the most successful³ graduate program in her field. So I have some experience with what entices students to apply and, if offered a place, attend a program here in the States.

Rigorous admissions standards (particularly if those standards are based more on actual academic performance and demonstrations of competence and intellectual vigor, rather than standardized test scores⁴ or other simplistic metrics) may, with some probability, imply a student body which is more competent, dedicated, and focused; if the admissions process is decent, one that has greater diversity of experience and interest; a program that is not simply a degree mill; and a faculty which is more engaged with students (because the students are more interesting). Those all contribute to a better classroom experience and a brisker pace which means more material can be covered.

¹Depending on the university's ability to get it perceived as such, which is largely a matter of reputation and somewhat less one of marketing.

²Here "cost" includes the effort required to be admitted, and not simply price.

³For example, likely the best at placing graduates in jobs of their chosen type; among the best at successfully recruiting students, both in terms of total applications and at recruiting top-choice students; short time-to-degree; high student academic productivity.

⁴As someone who routinely scored top marks in standardized tests, from grade school through the GRE, I'm fairly sure they primarily measure the subject's ability to do well on standardized tests. The main skills required for most of them are relaxation, focus, and the ability to learn and use test-taking tricks.