Nowadays, most of the high-ranked universities are from the developed countries. However, there are many talents in the developing countries who cannot afford such universities for their graduation due to lack of fund or other limitations. There are many examples, where these researchers from developing countries have shown their talents in some stage of their life (in their home country or abroad). Although they have graduated from low-ranked universities, their clear vision, high motivation towards quality research, and hard work make them valuable for the whole world. I don't want to mention any particular name here.
On the contrary, some of the graduates from high-ranked universities cannot prove themselves in their research life. Then what is the key issue to become a good researcher?
Here is Kennedy's list of attributes that a good researcher should strive to be: Objective, open-minded, honest, headstrong, independent, careful, eager to learn, perceptive, patient, original, creative. These attributes are not taught by good or bad universities in developed or developing countries!
I would say that usually renowned universities have a strong research focus and will have more funding to attract professors who specialize in research. This will usually lead to equating one with the other.
Research universities will most likely guide the student in their research and some of the faculty will even tell the student what to do. If the person is a "follower" his contribution will likely be that of incremental research papers instead of breakthroughs. This may also happen in non-research universities but will likely be of lower frequency.
As researchers progress in their studies the logical path to follow is towards higher independence. In non-research universities this is more marked, since the expertise will be less than research universities. Research universities will also actively search for this talent, and pay more for it. This has the disadvantage that the student will be left to his own initiative and willingness to commit errors.
In research universities, if the university is crowded, the student has to compete for the attention of professors. This will make it harder to make bonds but at the same time he may be exposed to first hand knowledge if he has initiative. This may be the reverse in universities with low population but will most likely be more difficult to find a good professor.
All in all, I think both have pros and cons and ultimately will depend on the type of student and his attributes(as expressed by Ian)
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