“Skip the debt. Skip the indoctrination. Get the Palantir degree.”
So opens the mission statement of Palantir’s Meritocracy Fellowship, a program that invites “exceptional” high school graduates to forgo college and pursue paid internships at the defense consulting firm. High-achieving fellows can even receive a return offer for positions with salaries that start at $157,000. But in a field as ethically challenging and interdisciplinary as security consulting, a college education is especially important in giving students the resources, experiences and time to grow into ethical leaders.
While college tuition prices have risen far more than other commodities in the modern economy, students can “skip the debt” in other ways. Many universities offer financial aid packages that meet full demonstrated need, and Brown has one of the most generous aid programs in the country. In the case of Google or NVIDIA, employees are likely to pay off their loans in a matter of years thanks to loan assistance programs. The average employee at a major tech company earns over six figures, an impressive return on investment for a college education.
At first glance, programs like the Meritocracy Fellowship might suggest that paying for a college degree is optional. However, these initiatives do not offer the same developmental opportunities required to grow moral intuition about large-scale problems. A farmer or a firefighter can learn by doing, as they tangibly see the effects of their work and can be held accountable for their decisions. In contrast, when it comes to building software used to surveil millions, it becomes hard to see the effects of unethical decisions until civil liberties are violated.
Lived experiences at college develop this moral intuition over time — we discover who we want to be after being exposed to an incredible variety of backgrounds, values and ambitions. All Brown undergraduates are required to spend at least two years living on campus; interacting with diverse peers allows us to understand the world and refine our notions of a meaningful life. Opportunities like the Brown Outing Club promote a love of nature, while cultural and affinity groups expose students to potentially unfamiliar cultures. Those who want to shape the world must first understand the world. In stark contrast, the Meritocracy Fellows live with the same 20 teenagers for months.
Brown’s classrooms offer opportunities for moral debate. The University offers courses such as CSCI 1953A: “Accessible and Inclusive Cybersecurity and Privacy” and many other ethics-focused computer science and engineering classes. Furthermore, each introductory computer science class features Socially Responsible Computing content in every TA section. These seminars allow students to debate their opinions in a low-stakes environment. For-profit companies, on the other hand, might struggle to promote ethical decision-making while protecting the bottom line, which is why employees must join with an already strong sense of their values.
Critics of higher education claim that colleges indoctrinate students through biased course material or professors. Vice President JD Vance declared “universities are the enemy” for this exact reason. Yet, Palantir’s college alternative is no better. In an attempt to condense four years of liberal arts education into 4 months, Palantir provides “curated readings” and “seminars with leading experts” on why the West is “worth defending.” Yet, every single one of the “leading experts” listed on the program website holds a university degree, often from Ivy League institutions. Clearly, their “indoctrination” is not strong enough to prevent Palantir from using them as role models.
Palantir, in true anti-college fashion, claims “those with the highest aptitude deserve … responsibility, not busy work.” For many career paths, this is undoubtedly true. Yet, for motivated programmers — the very demographic the Meritocracy Fellowship is recruiting — the image of college as one big waiting room is completely detached from the reality of opportunity-rich campuses. Brown, an institution devoted to “serving the community, the nation and the world,” does not admit students for them to live on the sidelines — many of us work summer internships, join pre-professional clubs or conduct impactful research. We take on responsibility, but have room to make mistakes and learn. For those with “aptitude” and “conviction,” as anti-college pundits paint their recruits, this place is anything but passive.
Arya Vishwakarma ’29 can be reached at arya_vishwakarma@brown.edu. Please send responses to this column to letters@browndailyherald.com and op-eds to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
