Reply to Is there anything positive about legacy admissions?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Legacies keep the alumi donation pipeline full. With no legacies donations would plummet. It is that simple. [/quote]

There's no evidence of this:  an alternative hypothesis is that legacy boosts lead to admissions of kids who wouldn't have been admitted were it not for the legacy boost, thereby perpetuating the supremacy of otherwise less than stellar kids.  And maybe one of the kids who would have been admitted, if selection were fully merit based would be the next billionaire who could keep college coffers full.[/quote]

It's a pretty straight forward assumption.  Most people would donate less if their child was rejected.

The even bigger issue for schools is that alumni are walking billboards.  They have a much larger impact an application rates than you realize.

None of this is measurable by a study.[/quote]

Yes, so you should stop stating your opinions as if they're fact.   Stating "most people would donate less if their child was rejected" does not mean that legacy admissions are the best option for universities, and [b]the most elite universities don't need their alumni to be walking billboards for them--they're already at sub-5% admittance rates. [/b] It could be that cchools could do better if they picked the best applicant, and that best applicant was more successful and could donate more than the legacy student.[/quote]

The elite schools are at sub 5% admittance rates BECAUSE of their alumni. "Best" as you say, is subjective. Best to Americans means reputation, cache, prestige, and perceived smarts, if the elite schools just focus on a cut off line based off test scores and grades, they will soon no longer be elite, because the elite of the U.S. will not want to go to these schools. [/quote]

That’s your opinion, not a fact.  As mentioned earlier in this thread, plenty of countries (ex: England, France, India, Korea, China) have elite universities with admissions that are entirely merit based that are perceived as elite.

[/quote]

I would love to see the stats on US citizen admissions to the elite universities in those countries. They also have very different funding mechanisms.

The educational environment for kids is incredibly miserable in Asia. I see this first-hand as I live in Singapore. It is exhausting to witness the intensity with which families are pursuing US university options.  The kids have after school and Saturday tuition all designed to optimize test scores and grades.  And yes, all of the selection tests are trainable with enough effort.  They no longer measure anything other than test prep.

They’ve even managed to add in certifications to after school art, theater, and music programs. The credentialism is out of control.  [/quote]

Yes, And legacy admissions are a solution for that….[/quote]

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