"I do appreciate the level of knowlege DCA gives me compared to the other school I attended. Having not been held to the standards that DCA holds its students to I felt a bit of extra studying on my part was necessary to ensure I would successfully pass all of the stage checks. That level of knowlege is why I chose DCA."
Could you not have reached the "DCA standard of knowledge" by putting forth great effort on your own, outside of DCA? I hear you saying it's because you went to DCA that you raised your standards. I'd say having high standards, where ever you train, is a personal choice. I'd also say having high standards isn't having rules about how close you can taxi to a fuel truck or knowing the minimum tire pressure on a 152. If it looks flat, it probably is.
"but I will say this, the last school I went to, which was a state university, did not have any connections or resources of job opportunity. They hired you as a CFI and that was it"
Back in the day, you didn't need special connections. You got your ratings and experience, put in your time, paid your dues, and entered the different levels of the job market based on your qualifications. I don't think things are that much different today....