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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I agree with OP too. I had assumed the best in the system until I saw this article in the NYT Thursday (Sorry, it's paywalled, but one of the key underlying files it links to is not paywalled)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/01/business/college-tuition-price-consultants.html
Underlying file by "enrollment" consultancy: https://pages.eab.com/rs/732-GKV-655/images/EMS-FAO-StrategicUseofGrantAid-WP.pdf

This shows that there is a lot of manipulation AT LEAST after admissions offers are made, to increase yield. I consider it dishonest for universities to make it appear that a student is getting "merit aid" when it's really a form of discount to get them to enroll (as the article/linked file illustrate), but it's not really even a discount because the published cost of attendance is inflated. (e.g., cost of attendance is $70k/yr, student is offered $20k/yr in merit aid, yet net cost of attendance is $30k/yr.). 
It would not surprise me if this kind of algorithm-based analysis is happening for admissions as well (after all, yield is driven not only by accepted admissions offers but also by the admitted applications.)
Ihis blog by an admissions counseling firm also argues that Ivies' "need blind" thing is a myth. (it points out to the recent lawsuit settlement). https://www.ivycoach.com/the-ivy-coach-blog/college-admissions/need-blind-admission-farce/[/quote]

Some old threads here talk about this a lot - the info they ask for is intentional. 
https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/30/1221854.page#28126024

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/105/1217721.page#28111566

There's a podcast that discusses need-blind and what a farce it is, too. Also, there is a predilection towards highly educated and highly compensated parents, so the better the parents' education (T25 schools and grad) and professions, the better the outcomes for the applicants.
[/quote]
Thanks for this (This is PP to whom you responded). Wish I'd seen these (and wish the NYT article) before my kid went through the process this year.
Applied and was accepted with "merit aid" to an OOS public...coincidentally receiving the same "scholarship" type as a family member received a couple of years earlier (who was also OOS but not strong academically). And ~2 marketing emails per week to parents after the admissions notification. I'm so turned off by that university now that I will tell my friends with younger students to steer clear and wish I had dissuaded my kid from spending the time and $ on the application.[/quote]

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