Even Yale is a day spa for a significant portion of its students. Trust me, I've lived in New Haven. Any student talented enough to get into Yale or Stanford but choosing UO can still make it into any top grad school or be hired as a software engineer at Google or Amazon, if he or she puts in the same extraordinary effort as do the hardworking undergrads who happen to be at the Stanfords or Yales. Why pay private school prices unless one is wealthy or receives a windfall merit scholarship? And not going to school at all is far costlier, if that's your alternative.