> when I hire someone who isn’t fresh out of college, I only care about experience / interview skills / references

If everyone who _did_ hire fresh college grads gave preference only to those coming from exclusive schools, only those from exclusive schools end up with the experience, interview skills and references you look for. In this way, exclusivity perpetuates itself.

The best way to _actually_ focus on hiring for skill? Find those who haven't been given a chance before, such as not having attended a top-name school and subsequently didn't end up at top-name firms, then invest in them. It's more expensive to do, but a lot of the top talent doesn't have the experience, interview skills and references you may be looking for.