Lottery only solution

[Anonymous]

How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

[Anonymous]

There are other countries that do this.

The problem in the US is that a 4.0 at one school is *not* the same as a 4.0 at another school, and the "haves" will always be better prepared for testing.

So it's not really a fair solution in the end. But I get the allure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

If colleges are telling the truth about having multiple qualified applicants for every seat, why should they care?

[Anonymous]

Op here- I just think people seem to be all over the place with this ruling. People are frustrated about diversity and holistic review but then get mad about a lottery system that would essential be the most objective possible solution. The most logical solution to put all things to rest would be a lottery. No room to be upset either way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

So what happens when the orchestra doesn't have any violinists, or the football team doesn't have a quarterback or the chem department doesn't have any org chem students? Or when the student body is 80% lesbians?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

If colleges are telling the truth about having multiple qualified applicants for every seat, why should they care?

Because under your system they won't get that.

Because if they thought pulling names out of a hat was the best way to do it, that is what they would do al;ready.

Because they know that a thoughtful selection process is the best way to increase likelihood of good results, which is why a thoughtful selection process is used for every college, job, program, selective club, etc on the planet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

That's not how country clubs work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here- I just think people seem to be all over the place with this ruling. People are frustrated about diversity and holistic review but then get mad about a lottery system that would essential be the most objective possible solution. The most logical solution to put all things to rest would be a lottery. No room to be upset either way.

Because people are fine with certain types of discrimination (i.e. building a diverse class) as long as it doesn't impact them

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

So what happens when the orchestra doesn't have any violinists, or the football team doesn't have a quarterback or the chem department doesn't have any org chem students? Or when the student body is 80% lesbians?

What on earth? Sit down, PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

If colleges are telling the truth about having multiple qualified applicants for every seat, why should they care?

Because under your system they won't get that.

Because if they thought pulling names out of a hat was the best way to do it, that is what they would do al;ready.

Because they know that a thoughtful selection process is the best way to increase likelihood of good results, which is why a thoughtful selection process is used for every college, job, program, selective club, etc on the planet.

Nonsense. Harvard can say we want a 3.8 UW GPA a 1540 SAT and x number of leadership positions or y number of service hours or z varsity letters. All the kids who hit that criteria, get their names drawn out of a hat. If you trust schools more, applicants are marked as qualified or not and everyone qualified goes into a lottery.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

So what happens when the orchestra doesn't have any violinists, or the football team doesn't have a quarterback or the chem department doesn't have any org chem students? Or when the student body is 80% lesbians?

Well it shouldn’t matter if at the end the goal is just academic achievement performance. Seems like lottery is the only way to stop the scapegoating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

So what happens when the orchestra doesn't have any violinists, or the football team doesn't have a quarterback or the chem department doesn't have any org chem students? Or when the student body is 80% lesbians?

This is the problem, in a nutshell. Colleges are trying to balance out multiple interests, which is not well served by choosing randomly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

If colleges are telling the truth about having multiple qualified applicants for every seat, why should they care?

Because under your system they won't get that.

Because if they thought pulling names out of a hat was the best way to do it, that is what they would do al;ready.

Because they know that a thoughtful selection process is the best way to increase likelihood of good results, which is why a thoughtful selection process is used for every college, job, program, selective club, etc on the planet.

Nonsense. Harvard can say we want a 3.8 UW GPA a 1540 SAT and x number of leadership positions or y number of service hours or z varsity letters. All the kids who hit that criteria, get their names drawn out of a hat. If you trust schools more, applicants are marked as qualified or not and everyone qualified goes into a lottery.

Want to know how I know you don't know anything about how colleges build a class?

Also, here's an interesting fact: it already works that way. They choose from all the qualified kids who apply.

Your suggestion adds nothing helpful to college or applicant and in fact hurts both by limitation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How would people feel about a lottery for college admissions? So for example: everyone with 1500 plus and 4.0 gets a lottery ticket to a top school. That seems to be the only way to solve all the angst. Otherwise things will continue to be legislated.

This is often suggested, and it is very very silly.

You are suggesting that colleges don't get to build their class and choose their students, and that students don't get to choose the college they apply to, or at best only get to apply to one.

Worse for the colleges, worse for the student, and somehow that is more "fair"? By pulling names out of a hat?

I suggest you rethink this idea.

If colleges are telling the truth about having multiple qualified applicants for every seat, why should they care?

Because under your system they won't get that.

Because if they thought pulling names out of a hat was the best way to do it, that is what they would do al;ready.

Because they know that a thoughtful selection process is the best way to increase likelihood of good results, which is why a thoughtful selection process is used for every college, job, program, selective club, etc on the planet.

Nonsense. Harvard can say we want a 3.8 UW GPA a 1540 SAT and x number of leadership positions or y number of service hours or z varsity letters. All the kids who hit that criteria, get their names drawn out of a hat. If you trust schools more, applicants are marked as qualified or not and everyone qualified goes into a lottery.

Want to know how I know you don't know anything about how colleges build a class?

Also, here's an interesting fact: it already works that way. They choose from all the qualified kids who apply.

Your suggestion adds nothing helpful to college or applicant and in fact hurts both by limitation.

Building a class means enough rich kids from the right prep schools who know how to tailor applications or who pay someone to do it for them