===== 🏛️ Institutional Prestige (Academic Definition) =====

**Institutional [[prestige]]** refers to the elevated reputation, influence, and symbolic authority of certain universities, hospitals, research centers, or professional organizations — often used as a shortcut to confer credibility and importance on people or publications associated with them.

==== 📌 Key Components ====
  * **Historical reputation** (e.g., Harvard, Oxford, Mayo Clinic)
  * **Selective access** (high entry barriers for students or staff)
  * **Funding power** and elite partnerships
  * **Media visibility** and global rankings
  * **Influence over policy, publication, and peer networks**

==== 🧠 In Practice ====
> A review paper from a top-tier university may be accepted or cited widely regardless of its scientific merit, simply due to its **affiliation halo**.

==== 🎭 Risks and Criticisms ====
  * **Merit by association** – assuming quality due to the name on the letterhead.
  * **Gatekeeping** – preference given to prestigious institutions in funding, publishing, and peer review.
  * **Bias reinforcement** – ideas from lesser-known institutions face higher scrutiny.
  * **Stagnation** – established institutions dominate discourse, discouraging innovation from below.

==== 📎 Related Terms ====
  * [[academic_prestige|Academic Prestige]]
  * [[gatekeeping|Gatekeeping]]
  * [[careerism|Careerism]]
  * [[formalism|Formalism]]
  * [[academic_theater|Academic Theater]]

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**Bottom line**: *Institutional prestige can open doors — but also close minds.*