# What makes a college “good”?

- Institution: TED
- Department: TED-Ed
- Speaker: Cecilia M. Orphan
- Year: 2025
- Level: For everyone
- Language: English
- Subjects: Teaching and learning
- Source: [TED](https://www.ted.com/talks/cecilia_m_orphan_what_makes_a_college_good)
- Licence: [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) (Non-commercial use only, and no changed versions.)
- Who can watch: Tweens profiles and older (sources give no ratings; placed by Invisible Network from the source's own words)

Why are "good" colleges often the ones that accept the fewest students? Exposing the harmful consequences of society's obsession with highly rejective (and expensive) universities, educator Cecilia M. Orphan asks us to rethink what makes institutions "prestigious" and re-consider the value of schools that serve all students: regional public universities. \[Directed by Aaron Augenblick, Augenblick Studios, narrated by Cecilia M. Orphan and Alexandra Panzer, music by Bradford Reed\]

## Lectures

1. [What makes a college “good”?](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/learn/ted/cecilia_m_orphan_what_makes_a_college_good/0d8654e72d92), 5 min (TED's player)