[Tricky]

-Your titles and ranks mean nothing.
I suppose what you're talking about the lack of Morrowind's faction-status (spell)merchants? I agree. The shift in disposition is the only thing that you really get in return.

I have a bigger gripe with that though. The level caps in Morrowind for gaining ranks were annoying, I think most will agree. However, now that they're related to how far you've progressed through for instance the Mages Guild, a barbarian can become the arch mage. As long as any non-magic character can complete the Mages Guild quests, there is virtually no stopping them.

Then again, it's all about role-playing though. If you want to play a barbarian Orc, you probably don't want to joing the Mages guild in the first place.