Operation Varsity Blues

[Anonymous]

Definitely a bad taste for stanford since it looked like the corruption went higher than an individual coach.

[Anonymous]

I felt so bad for the kids. Some of that re-enacted dialog is tough to hear, esp. one exchange where the mom is saying to Rick Singer: "Look, daughter B is not like daughter A. Daughter B is smart; I don't want her to figure this out!"

So she is saying, really, that daughter B is more savvy than daughter A, or that daughter A is more trusting of her mom, but the mom is using the word "smart." And you know that daughter A is hearing this as "my mom thinks my sister is smart which is not like me, therefore my mom thinks I'm dumb"

And, saying it to the world, on netflix, with names attached. ugh. that poor kid

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Definitely a bad taste for stanford since it looked like the corruption went higher than an individual coach.

+1

Hint: Stanford is not the only ivy prone to "pay to play".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I watched it this afternoon and enjoyed it. These parents were the biggest chumps. The conversations, I died.

The documentary took the stance that social media in large part has pushed us to this point. I disagree. Elite universities have always been high desirable. Through the early 90s, if you were a legacy and went to an elite private you were in. Top schools have fundamentally changed how they build a freshman class. They still want the children of elites, and now they want the children of 1st generation college students (preferable POC, but they'll take who they can get) so the elites can appear woke.

+1

BINGO. Just be sure to have your kid "volunteer" in your home country, so your kid can seem like the best candidate ever, grades be damned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The book "The Price of Admissions" thoroughly explains the donor/legacy/celebrity/athlete preferences in the Ivy League and other prestigious schools and was published back in 2007. And that's just the non-illegal ways people get in. When you consider the low % admitted and that a majority of those fit one of the hook categories, there are very, very few kids who get in on their own academic merits alone.

+1

Part of why the parents in this area are so stuck their kids playing sports, even if they suck.

This part is true and we all know it. All the kids in hs feel like they have to do a sport for their resumes. If colleges weren't so hard to get into it would be like my days in hs in the 70s where people didn't care about the sports.

Are you stupid? Stop, rhetorical question, for what it's worth mouth breather, many kids "do a sport" because they like it and it teaches many things like hard work, discipline and humility.[/quote]

Clearly none of which apply to you, so move along.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How can an applicant lie about their race/ethnicity? Isn’t their actual race noted in the high school transcript, or counselor’s recommendation?

If you get 23 & Me, you can find that 1% or less of an under-represented minority to check on the application.

One has to be a quarter (25%) of a minority to check a race box.

That’s not true. Back when I was in school you only needed to show 12% Native American blood to get a full ride to any state school (western state). A bunch of us could do that. Plus, those with any black blood in them can claim black.

I suspect that people take MANY more liberties with that information during these times.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The thing I found fascinating was that my guess is most of these kids could probably have gotten into reasonably good schools on their own merits - they had all the advantages to begin with and could pay full freight at lots of small privates, but certain schools were considered appropriately chi chi - bit even the top top schools in some cases, but USC, Georgetown.

It left me with a bad taste in my mouth for a lot of the schools and their big time athletics programs.

+1

Absolutely will look at the schools with big athletics differently, and not favorably - wonder if employers will start thinking the same. The exact opposite of these the helicopter parents wanted.

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately this scandal will be forgotten soon and the schools will not end up changing much. Other side doors will open. The US seems ok with privilege due to wealth while bashing URM and first gen students for the small number of spots they take

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely a bad taste for stanford since it looked like the corruption went higher than an individual coach.

+1

Hint: Stanford is not the only ivy prone to "pay to play".

He got shafted. I honestly liked the Stanford coach and he was the most sympathetic of the entire bunch. I will buy his book.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely a bad taste for stanford since it looked like the corruption went higher than an individual coach.

+1

Hint: Stanford is not the only ivy prone to "pay to play".

He got shafted. I honestly liked the Stanford coach and he was the most sympathetic of the entire bunch. I will buy his book.

Agreed. Watched this with my HS senior. You could see how Singer was "grooming" him for a potential recruitment scheme down the road. He kept donating to the program, which is legal, and the sailing coach never gave him anything of value (not promised anything of value) in exchange. But I'm sure Singer was thinking long-term, playing the long game, and figuring that the coach would one day cross the line to help his program's benefactor.

[Anonymous]

It's understandable that people have resentment towards the rich that go through an easy side door to elite colleges. But let's also acknowledge their donations made it possible for schools to accept URM by providing the financial aid. Without them, many URM don't have a chance to go to colleges because they can't afford it no matter how excellent they may be. Let's view the favorite treatment to the rich is a way to attract the donations that benefit the financially underprivileged. Give the rich 20% of the admission spots for their donations and we still have the rest of 80% for the real talents through competition based on merit. How about that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's understandable that people have resentment towards the rich that go through an easy side door to elite colleges. But let's also acknowledge their donations made it possible for schools to accept URM by providing the financial aid. Without them, many URM don't have a chance to go to colleges because they can't afford it no matter how excellent they may be. Let's view the favorite treatment to the rich is a way to attract the donations that benefit the financially underprivileged. Give the rich 20% of the admission spots for their donations and we still have the rest of 80% for the real talents through competition based on merit. How about that?

This is a really stupid take by a really stupid person. How about that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here- you all are right. But what was kind of shocking to me was how easy it was to make someone into a bogus athlete. If its so easy to fudge such credentials, and have someone take the SAT for you. You begin to wonder who else is involved and what other ways people use to get in

As a hiring manager, I would no longer consider those degrees a marker of success or intelligence.

The schools will dilute their brand over time. Perhaps.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
The schools will dilute their brand over time. Perhaps.

Highly unlikely. It is the demand that enables the few to commit fraud. They are connected.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely a bad taste for stanford since it looked like the corruption went higher than an individual coach.

+1

Hint: Stanford is not the only ivy prone to "pay to play".

He got shafted. I honestly liked the Stanford coach and he was the most sympathetic of the entire bunch. I will buy his book.

Same. I feel so sorry for that guy and his family