New York Times gift articles

I don't think so. As far as I know the primary constraint is the number of seats. That is an artificial constraint from the top to maintain exclusivity and brand value. In the trickle down effects of such a constraint those managing the school are incentivised to get the most money for each of those seats as this is largely what is funding their pay and research, like the kinds of lab equipment available. We are in the age when lots of equipment exists beyond the scope of what any school can afford, such as EUV for edge node silicon fab tech. How the school prepares elite students to lead in a field where the school cannot provide direct and relevant training is a bit dicey and is the basis for a lot of financial pressure. Overall, removing this elite class of funding will inevitably reduce the relevance of the institution because it will need to do more with less while filling the same number of seats via supply and demand adjusted prices.