In my profession (medical device/ lab equipment sales), it isn't an advantage to come from an elite school. Many of the people that excel in this field come from State schools and most had to work their butt off to get any measure of success. Many assume that if you were handed everything on a silver platter (like the families that can afford Wake's tuition), that you don't know how to work and will not be able to succeed. Now, there a lot of stereotypes that may or may not be accurate, but that's how it often is perceived. I'm just as likely to get an interview (no, I'm not looking for and don't hope to any time soon) coming from ECU as I would from Wake.
Maybe ECU and WCU and App aren't the same caliber of school as Wake. If you've been working for a while in your career, it really doesn't matter. What you on the job is what matters. I know that when my daughter is ready for college in five years, I'm not likely to offer to pay for Wake's tuition. She's going to have to get a scholarship to go. And no, my parents didn't pay for my Wake tuition either, even though it was a much lower rate. I worked a full time job all the way through, worked crazy hours in the summers and took out student loans. I'll offer to pay some, but I don't believe that handing a student everything for free does them any favors with preparing them for adulthood.