Proposed legislation would ban legacy preference at colleges, universities across New York

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a waste of time. I feel like this is distracting from the actual problems.

I'm an alum interviewer for a selective school and I can tell you it's hard to get in even if you are a legacy. They are rejected more than they are accepted. If they get in with a 4.0 and 1500 where they otherwise wouldn't (and in my experience, they aren't), who gives a sh*t?

then why bother with legacy, and why are you an interviewer there?

Not sure what you are saying. I don't have a problem with legacy preference. I don't think it is a meaningful problem.

I'm responding to your "who gives a sh*t"? If you don't give a sh1t why are you an interviewer?

Ok, so, what that meant was if a legacy admit is otherwise qualified and gets a bump because they're legacy who cares. It's not like they are getting in over people more qualified than them. In my experience. That was my point. Obviously.

Holy F! What “experience of yours” are you saying. Explain. It better be with objective and rational supporting evidence. Else, your other end is speaking.

Hey genius. The chart included on this thread shows that about 30% of legacies get in. My experience corroborates that they usually don't get in. FFS.

I am not in the room with the admissions committee, but I have seen that legacy admits usually do not get in, and when they do they appear to be qualified. I was mentioning my experience to highlight that point. There is no way for me or anyone else to know. I'd love to know what "supporting evidence" could support this either way. Unless you are an admissions officer at hyps violating your employment agreement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Clearly unconstitutional[/quote


yes, the state cannot control private institutions in such a manner

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Neither federal nor state governments can ban colleges and universities from determning the criteria they want to build their student community, as long as they don't discriminate against protected classes. I can't believe the reach you all want government to have over our everyday lives. It's insane.

But applicants are being discriminated.
that's the p applicants that's the probelm.

Public schools might get baned.
Private colleges and universities at least start paying tax then.

No, they're not. Applicants are not being discriminated against based on their race, color, sex, religion, national origin, veteran status, or sexual orientation just because a big donor's son, who in just about every case is probably every bit as qualified, gets admitted. Now, I would argue that applicants are discriminated against based on mental disability. So if this is where you all want to base your logic on, let's start letting in kids like my brilliant ADHD kid who can't get into Harvard because his grades aren't high enough. He's truly, objectively brilliant and smarter than 99% of the people in the US (this is been shown time and again through testing), but his grades aren't the best because high school is hell for a smart kid with severe ADHD. Why should he be discriminated against based on his documented disability?

You don't mark ADHD on application.
How do you get discriminated.
They ask you you mark your race.

Exactly...and that's how you're not discriminated against. I am saying that those with disabilities are discriminated against based on the criteria for admissions. People on here seem to think that universities can't use their own criteria, because it's discriminatory. So I'm going to jump on that bandwagon and say that grades shouldn't count, because that discriminates against students with learning disabilities---a protected class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Schools are looking for the value each student might add to their community. They decide what's important to them, as long as the students are within a range of GPA, rigor and (maybe) test scores. I'm sure you can understand that having a family like Bush or Kennedy (or Bezos, Gates, Koch or Kraft etc) can provide additional benefits to a school.

This, 100%. People on this board think we live and die by "the stats." Are there any studies out there about what good the typical A+ high school students do in this world compared to the B+ students? I'm going to guess, it isn't meaningful. What a person brings to a college community, or any community, is not defined soley by a very narrow set of "stats." Such small-minded thinking. Which, by the way, is why none of you are running Harvard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Early Decision is the new proxy to signal that you're a full-pay legacy rich white kid with middling scores and maybe an athlete. If you're not applying ED, you don't have a chance.

ED is going to make up a larger and larger portion of incoming classes. It's all the kids who don't need financial aid.

Not true. There are hundreds of Questbridge admits (financial aid kids) who are admitted ED to Ivies and Ivy+ schools every year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Schools are looking for the value each student might add to their community. They decide what's important to them, as long as the students are within a range of GPA, rigor and (maybe) test scores. I'm sure you can understand that having a family like Bush or Kennedy (or Bezos, Gates, Koch or Kraft etc) can provide additional benefits to a school.

This, 100%. People on this board think we live and die by "the stats." Are there any studies out there about what good the typical A+ high school students do in this world compared to the B+ students? I'm going to guess, it isn't meaningful. What a person brings to a college community, or any community, is not defined soley by a very narrow set of "stats." Such small-minded thinking. Which, by the way, is why none of you are running Harvard.

And you need to know the students' race or legacy status for that?

You should see each 'person' as an individual person, not as a son of somebody or as a part of a racial group.

[Anonymous]

ED is going to make up a larger and larger portion of incoming classes.

This is absolutely true. Schools will take 50-60% of the class ED which will continue to benefit yield and selectivity. The number of applicants from Questbridge and similar programs are too small to make a meaningful impact.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

“Mission” in the sense I’m using it is not limited to a formal mission statement written on a piece of paper. It refers to the institutional priorities and preferences as defined by the institution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

“Mission” in the sense I’m using it is not limited to a formal mission statement written on a piece of paper. It refers to the institutional priorities and preferences as defined by the institution.

If Harvard formally defined the way you are thinking, show me where you found it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What a waste of time. I feel like this is distracting from the actual problems.

I'm an alum interviewer for a selective school and I can tell you it's hard to get in even if you are a legacy. They are rejected more than they are accepted. If they get in with a 4.0 and 1500 where they otherwise wouldn't (and in my experience, they aren't), who gives a sh*t?

then why bother with legacy, and why are you an interviewer there?

Not sure what you are saying. I don't have a problem with legacy preference. I don't think it is a meaningful problem.

I'm responding to your "who gives a sh*t"? If you don't give a sh1t why are you an interviewer?

Ok, so, what that meant was if a legacy admit is otherwise qualified and gets a bump because they're legacy who cares. It's not like they are getting in over people more qualified than them. In my experience. That was my point. Obviously.

Holy F! What “experience of yours” are you saying. Explain. It better be with objective and rational supporting evidence. Else, your other end is speaking.

Hey genius. The chart included on this thread shows that about 30% of legacies get in. My experience corroborates that they usually don't get in. FFS.

I am not in the room with the admissions committee, but I have seen that legacy admits usually do not get in, and when they do they appear to be qualified. I was mentioning my experience to highlight that point. There is no way for me or anyone else to know. I'd love to know what "supporting evidence" could support this either way. Unless you are an admissions officer at hyps violating your employment agreement.

The law suit against Harvard had plenty of objective data to show Asians are being discriminated against legacies and non-legacy whites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter. Now that test optional is the new standard and colleges describe a "holistic process", they will take whomever they want with even more opacity.

The process is completely broken.

They should ban forcing you to mark race and legacy status on college applications just like job applications.

[phone]

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

“Mission” in the sense I’m using it is not limited to a formal mission statement written on a piece of paper. It refers to the institutional priorities and preferences as defined by the institution.

If Harvard formally defined the way you are thinking, show me where you found it.

A formal definition is not the point. None of these colleges deny that they give a preference to legacy applicants. They’re not hiding it, it is one of their many priorities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

“Mission” in the sense I’m using it is not limited to a formal mission statement written on a piece of paper. It refers to the institutional priorities and preferences as defined by the institution.

If Harvard formally defined the way you are thinking, show me where you found it.

A formal definition is not the point. None of these colleges deny that they give a preference to legacy applicants. They’re not hiding it, it is one of their many priorities.

In other words, Harvard's Vision and Mission are lofty but EMPTY words that have no practical meaning in practice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wonderful. I hope it’s banned everywhere. It’s a joke.

+1.

+1 I started a thread about how legacy is basically racist because it mostly helps rich white people. I got slammed for that thread, probably by legacies.

I stated something similar to her:

"we are supposed to live in a democracy, not an aristocracy,".. "To me, it's one of the most blatant examples of unfairness and inequality,"

Of course, the people at the top want to continue with it because it benefits them.

The argument is not that different to what liberals say about how white men support Trump because they are afraid of losing power as a group.

When did colleges ever claim that admissions is entirely meritocratic or "democratic"? They can and do value all sorts of things that you might think are unfair or irrelevant. As long as they're not engaging in unlawful discrimination, what's your argument against that?

Typical response from a legacy admit.

It's not illegal, but it's wrong. As stated, it benefits mostly rich white people.

You only want the US to be a "democracy" when it comes to some things, but apparently, not when it comes to your little snowflake who probably couldn't make it into an ivy without legacy.

Legacy was originally used by elite institutions much like holistic admission was -- to keep the undesirables out.

The whole "pull yourself up by your boostraps" only applies to the middle/lower class. For rich people, they have legacy to prop them up.

It’s not a matter of what I want, it’s a matter of recognizing who it is who gets to decide what a university’s mission is. Why do you think that people outside universities should define universities’ missions for them?

Since you talk about “university’s mission”, Harvard college’s Vision, Mission, and History as given by Harvard is copied below. Now, show us where in Harvard talks about “legacy” and “legacy preference”?

The Transformative Power of a Liberal Arts and Sciences Education

Our mission to educate future leaders is woven throughout the Harvard College experience, inspiring every member of our community to strive toward a more just, fair, and promising world.

Mission
The mission of Harvard College is to educate the citizens and citizen-leaders for our society. We do this through our commitment to the transformative power of a liberal arts and sciences education.
Beginning in the classroom with exposure to new ideas, new ways of understanding, and new ways of knowing, students embark on a journey of intellectual transformation. Through a diverse living environment, where students live with people who are studying different topics, who come from different walks of life and have evolving identities, intellectual transformation is deepened and conditions for social transformation are created. From this we hope that students will begin to fashion their lives by gaining a sense of what they want to do with their gifts and talents, assessing their values and interests, and learning how they can best serve the world.

Vision
Harvard College sets the standard for residential liberal arts and sciences education. We have committed to creating and sustaining the conditions that enable all Harvard College students to experience an unparalleled educational journey that is intellectually, socially, and personally transformative.

History
History
When you attend Harvard College, you become a part of the rich history of the nation’s oldest institution of higher learning. Founded in 1636, Harvard has changed dramatically over the centuries, but has always served as a haven for the world’s most ambitious scholars and leaders.

“Mission” in the sense I’m using it is not limited to a formal mission statement written on a piece of paper. It refers to the institutional priorities and preferences as defined by the institution.

If Harvard formally defined the way you are thinking, show me where you found it.

A formal definition is not the point. None of these colleges deny that they give a preference to legacy applicants. They’re not hiding it, it is one of their many priorities.

In other words, Harvard's Vision and Mission are lofty but EMPTY words that have no practical meaning in practice.

You’re free to think that if you want. I think many would disagree with you. Many would point to Harvard’s very substantial financial aid policy and grants, including the 20% of families with incomes less than $65k who need to pay $0 in tuition and don’t need to take out loans.

But the point is, these are Harvard’s decisions to make. They don’t need to make admissions decisions solely based on grades and test scores, even if you and others scream that that is the only “fair” or “meritocratic” thing to do. They don’t need to agree with the criteria by which are you judging them. And clearly, they don’t.