Anonymous
02/20/2026 18:26
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Alum here. With multiple
Other family members who were also alums.
DD applied last year and was rejected. 1470 and 4.35 W at competitive private. Higest rigor. Another double legacy with similar stats and rigor was also rejected. Three other kids with better stats got in.
Legacy isn't enough anymore. You need the grades and the SAT. And/or athletic recruit/FGLI.
Or Maybe if your granddad is friends with the President.... that might still work.
Even the "feeder" schools are no longer a guarantee.
Overall, I'm happy she's at a different school. I was miserable there. She's VERY happy at a different school.
No, even the president’s son did not attend Princeton. This kind of thinking doesn’t apply to Princeton.
Are you joking? President Bush's granddaughter was enrolled when I was there, so were members of various royal families and kids of CEOs. I sincerely doubt they were all 1500+ on their SATs.
Author Daniel Golden shows how Al Gore’s son earned a questionable admission to Harvard, and how presidential niece Lauren Bush got into Princeton despite below-average SAT scores, mediocre grades at her Houston prep school and not bothering to apply until a month after the deadline. I’d like to see a working-class kid from South Dallas try that trick…
No, I'm not joking. This was in response to the previous post about Princeton's presient, if you read it. The current president of Princeton - his son did not attend Princeton.
Or...the son didn't want to attend Princeton and live right next to mom and dad. I have several professor friends, and their kids don't want to be in the university in the town where they grew up, where their mom or dad teaches. It doesn't mean that Princeton rejected its future president's son.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 17:08
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Alum here. With multiple
Other family members who were also alums.
DD applied last year and was rejected. 1470 and 4.35 W at competitive private. Higest rigor. Another double legacy with similar stats and rigor was also rejected. Three other kids with better stats got in.
Legacy isn't enough anymore. You need the grades and the SAT. And/or athletic recruit/FGLI.
Or Maybe if your granddad is friends with the President.... that might still work.
Even the "feeder" schools are no longer a guarantee.
Overall, I'm happy she's at a different school. I was miserable there. She's VERY happy at a different school.
No, even the president’s son did not attend Princeton. This kind of thinking doesn’t apply to Princeton.
Are you joking? President Bush's granddaughter was enrolled when I was there, so were members of various royal families and kids of CEOs. I sincerely doubt they were all 1500+ on their SATs.
Author Daniel Golden shows how Al Gore’s son earned a questionable admission to Harvard, and how presidential niece Lauren Bush got into Princeton despite below-average SAT scores, mediocre grades at her Houston prep school and not bothering to apply until a month after the deadline. I’d like to see a working-class kid from South Dallas try that trick…
You are comparing apples to oranges citing examples from over 25 years ago, whereas the pps are discussing the present day….Admissions standards have changed quite a bit.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 16:56
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Alum here. With multiple
Other family members who were also alums.
DD applied last year and was rejected. 1470 and 4.35 W at competitive private. Higest rigor. Another double legacy with similar stats and rigor was also rejected. Three other kids with better stats got in.
Legacy isn't enough anymore. You need the grades and the SAT. And/or athletic recruit/FGLI.
Or Maybe if your granddad is friends with the President.... that might still work.
Even the "feeder" schools are no longer a guarantee.
Overall, I'm happy she's at a different school. I was miserable there. She's VERY happy at a different school.
No, even the president’s son did not attend Princeton. This kind of thinking doesn’t apply to Princeton.
Are you joking? President Bush's granddaughter was enrolled when I was there, so were members of various royal families and kids of CEOs. I sincerely doubt they were all 1500+ on their SATs.
Author Daniel Golden shows how Al Gore’s son earned a questionable admission to Harvard, and how presidential niece Lauren Bush got into Princeton despite below-average SAT scores, mediocre grades at her Houston prep school and not bothering to apply until a month after the deadline. I’d like to see a working-class kid from South Dallas try that trick…
No, I'm not joking. This was in response to the previous post about Princeton's presient, if you read it. The current president of Princeton - his son did not attend Princeton.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 16:46
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Alum here. With multiple
Other family members who were also alums.
DD applied last year and was rejected. 1470 and 4.35 W at competitive private. Higest rigor. Another double legacy with similar stats and rigor was also rejected. Three other kids with better stats got in.
Legacy isn't enough anymore. You need the grades and the SAT. And/or athletic recruit/FGLI.
Or Maybe if your granddad is friends with the President.... that might still work.
Even the "feeder" schools are no longer a guarantee.
Overall, I'm happy she's at a different school. I was miserable there. She's VERY happy at a different school.
No, even the president’s son did not attend Princeton. This kind of thinking doesn’t apply to Princeton.
Are you joking? President Bush's granddaughter was enrolled when I was there, so were members of various royal families and kids of CEOs. I sincerely doubt they were all 1500+ on their SATs.
Author Daniel Golden shows how Al Gore’s son earned a questionable admission to Harvard, and how presidential niece Lauren Bush got into Princeton despite below-average SAT scores, mediocre grades at her Houston prep school and not bothering to apply until a month after the deadline. I’d like to see a working-class kid from South Dallas try that trick…
Anonymous
02/20/2026 16:37
Subject: Re:Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:My son is a double legacy with a 1550 and a 4.0, plus strong extracurriculars. The REA was not a risk we were willing to take based on a lot of first hand experiences including actual stats of classmates kids over past few years. We decided to apply RD there this year while using ED1 (deferred), ED2 and EA at other schools and have already have some great T10 -20 options. From what we’ve seen, more than half of my classmates’ kids who applied REA or ED in past years, many with similar stats didn’t get in. One student with slightly lower scores was admitted but had a different kind of hook. The students who were accepted came through a mix of RD and EA, with no clear pattern.
Thank you for sharing! Our DC1 is in SCEA, with a couple younger siblings who may or may not apply in a few years.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 16:09
Subject: Re:Princeton Legacy
My son is a double legacy with a 1550 and a 4.0, plus strong extracurriculars. The REA was not a risk we were willing to take based on a lot of first hand experiences including actual stats of classmates kids over past few years. We decided to apply RD there this year while using ED1 (deferred), ED2 and EA at other schools and have already have some great T10 -20 options. From what we’ve seen, more than half of my classmates’ kids who applied REA or ED in past years, many with similar stats didn’t get in. One student with slightly lower scores was admitted but had a different kind of hook. The students who were accepted came through a mix of RD and EA, with no clear pattern.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 15:59
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Would 1500 / 4.0uw / high rigor from strong public pass the bar for legacy SCEA? State-level awards, strong and somewhat unique arts/community/research ECs but nothing crazy special. Don’t want to waste an opportunity to ED elsewhere if no real chance.
1500 would be low - according to their most recent frosh survey, most legacy admits scored 1540+ with over 1/3 scoring 1560+
https://projects.dailyprincetonian.com/frosh-survey-2029/academics.html#testing
Anonymous
02/20/2026 15:18
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:HYP admissions officers have all said that at least 2/3rds of their applicants would be successful at their college. Some have said it's more like 80%.
They've also said we could throw away the entire pile of admitted students, enroll a whole new class from the leftover applications, and the class would be no worse.
So when people say that any hooked applicant whether alumni or athlete has to also be qualified .. yeah, but they are almost all qualified.
Alumni kid at Princeton helps quite a bit, although less than faculty kid or athlete at Princeton.
Exactly. I've noticed whenever there's a discussion about hooked applicants, there's always an assumption that hooked = unqualified. Not true. It's about getting your (qualified) applicant chosen from a vast sea of qualified applicants.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 15:09
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Would 1500 / 4.0uw / high rigor from strong public pass the bar for legacy SCEA? State-level awards, strong and somewhat unique arts/community/research ECs but nothing crazy special. Don’t want to waste an opportunity to ED elsewhere if no real chance.
Yes, it would pass the bar, legacy or not legacy. But more importantly, does your DC fit what Princeton is looking for? Take a look at the supplemental essays. If you can craft a compelling app then go for it. Good luck!
Anonymous
02/20/2026 14:51
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:I think sibling legacy is quite strong there. My older daughter got in, and her two younger siblings were subsequently admitted. One attended, the other did not. We are completely unhooked
Yes, Princeton is very big on families and tradition, which is great. But we do know many siblings that did not get in (and also know families where all siblings attended).
Anonymous
02/20/2026 14:50
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I am a Princeton graduate. My understanding is that legacy status for Princeton matters only for Early Decision applications. And does matter for those.
I’m also a Princeton grad. And I’ve never heard anyone say that. Do you have a source you can cite for your “understanding.”
Not PP but I think a rule like this makes sense. I don’t oppose some legacy bump for entirely qualified kids who really want to go to the school — which they can show by applying ED or REA or whatever that school has. If they just want to see if they get in or are trophy hunting, no legacy bump.
I know a mom friend told me that one school is pretty explicit about this — maybe Vanderbilt? Or BC? Can’t recall.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 14:35
Subject: Princeton Legacy
I think sibling legacy is quite strong there. My older daughter got in, and her two younger siblings were subsequently admitted. One attended, the other did not. We are completely unhooked
Anonymous
02/20/2026 14:26
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Would 1500 / 4.0uw / high rigor from strong public pass the bar for legacy SCEA? State-level awards, strong and somewhat unique arts/community/research ECs but nothing crazy special. Don’t want to waste an opportunity to ED elsewhere if no real chance.
There is no ED. SCEA is not binding.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 14:12
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Would 1500 / 4.0uw / high rigor from strong public pass the bar for legacy SCEA? State-level awards, strong and somewhat unique arts/community/research ECs but nothing crazy special. Don’t want to waste an opportunity to ED elsewhere if no real chance.
Anonymous
02/20/2026 13:49
Subject: Princeton Legacy
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:1470 tho..
That's my point. You have to have the stats. If you pass that threshold, then maybe, legacy can give you a bump. But it won't make up for missing points on your GPA or SATs
It all depends. 1470 with a compelling application could get you in (think talent, international awards, etc), but then it wasn't really the legacy that got you in. Among three Princeton siblings and their network of friends from the 90s/2000s, none of the kids have been accepted so far (some double legacies, private school, full pay, etc.)