How much does legacy matter at Ivy League schools

[Anonymous]

If a student had great grades, great SAT scores, leadership, and time consuming extracurricular but won't necessarily win any national awards...does this type of student have a shot at an Ivy if they have legacy? How much of a hook is legacy these days?

Some activities have community impact but not to a large scale. The child was trying to be recruited for a sport but fell short so this took up most of the time, but has maximum rigor (9 AP classes after junior year), will take 6 more AP senior year, and will have unweighted GPA of 4.0 in a top FCPS public. Sat scores are 1520 currently and plans on taking one more time.

[Anonymous]

It's always a hook for ivy league schools. Have you been loyal to your alma mater? Yearly donation of 100k at least? If so, you should be okay.

[Anonymous]

I am not a major donor, no.

[Anonymous]

It's marginal.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the specific school. It's often less an actual hook and more of a designation that gets your file a thorough read.

Also, if the school offers ED, expect to apply ED to get the legacy tip. I assume the same for those that offer REA, though I've not looked into that specifically.

Harvard has a reputation for liking legacies. Yet, I know a kid at Harvard who was a double legacy, 4.0 uw/valedictorian/36, applied REA, got deferred to RD, got waitlisted in RD, and ultimately was admitted off the waitlist.

Anticipate that the legacy pool of applicants may be competitive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am not a major donor, no.

In that case, consider it as equivalent to the effect of an EC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's marginal.

+1 if you're not a major contributor to the university, in some way

[Anonymous]

Other things being equal between two otherwise identical candidates, your kid will get admitted. Marginal or not, it still helps.

[Anonymous]

My understanding is the legacy boost is significant. My memory was that it was about a 3x difference, but this article states legacies for Harvard have 6x the admit rate while Princeton 4x.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherrim/2024/11/01/does-legacy-still-matter-for-ivy-league-college-admission/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My understanding is the legacy boost is significant. My memory was that it was about a 3x difference, but this article states legacies for Harvard have 6x the admit rate while Princeton 4x.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherrim/2024/11/01/does-legacy-still-matter-for-ivy-league-college-admission/

Harvard is under too much scrutiny due to the legal case. Word is they're more careful now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Other things being equal between two otherwise identical candidates, your kid will get admitted. Marginal or not, it still helps.

People say this, but how often are two candidates truly identical? Perhaps they could have identical stats, but wouldn’t their essays and such distinguish them from one another? I don’t think my special snowflake is any more special than anyone else’s special snowflake, but I genuinely believe no other kid could have written my kid’s essays (and vice versa), had the same combination of activities and awards, etc.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Yeah it is a tough call between trying early at the Ivy or maybe trying a school early like UChicago/Hopkins/NYU/Georgetown.

I actually think my kid will blow it out of the park in college since the sports road is ending and the kid is a wizard and managing time and studying efficiently so they will fit in a lot of stuff.

But I recognize that almost recruited level isn't special when you are reading it...but as a parent I can say it is pretty special the level of time and dedication and grit it takes to give it a go, even if it doesn't work out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Yeah it is a tough call between trying early at the Ivy or maybe trying a school early like UChicago/Hopkins/NYU/Georgetown.

I actually think my kid will blow it out of the park in college since the sports road is ending and the kid is a wizard and managing time and studying efficiently so they will fit in a lot of stuff.

But I recognize that almost recruited level isn't special when you are reading it...but as a parent I can say it is pretty special the level of time and dedication and grit it takes to give it a go, even if it doesn't work out.

Sure but almost recruited applies to many thousands of applicants each year. It's not a distinctive EC and rarely reflects national achievement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Other things being equal between two otherwise identical candidates, your kid will get admitted. Marginal or not, it still helps.

People say this, but how often are two candidates truly identical? Perhaps they could have identical stats, but wouldn’t their essays and such distinguish them from one another? I don’t think my special snowflake is any more special than anyone else’s special snowflake, but I genuinely believe no other kid could have written my kid’s essays (and vice versa), had the same combination of activities and awards, etc.

No other kid could have written your kid's essays, but an essay coach might have!

Two kids from top schools with GPAs and test scores with <5% difference, who have both taken all top rigor courses and have good but not national level ECs, with similar ethic/ economic/ educational circumstances -- maybe has slightly more impressive ECs, and the other has more enthusiastic letters: they are functionally identical. Unless a kid is truly remarkable (Regeneron winner, nationally ranked figure skater, etc), any decision btw them is random.

In such a case, legacy can often be the tie breaker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Yeah it is a tough call between trying early at the Ivy or maybe trying a school early like UChicago/Hopkins/NYU/Georgetown.

I actually think my kid will blow it out of the park in college since the sports road is ending and the kid is a wizard and managing time and studying efficiently so they will fit in a lot of stuff.

But I recognize that almost recruited level isn't special when you are reading it...but as a parent I can say it is pretty special the level of time and dedication and grit it takes to give it a go, even if it doesn't work out.

If status is important to your kid, could apply early to Georgetown, Michigan, and likely EAs. Then shotgun the T20 RD (leaving out MIT, Chicago, and any other place that looks super-unlikely according to your school's stats).