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The only part I dislike is the massive application send off to several of these fine institutions. I'd assume in their minds that there was some pecking order of schools they would narrow down once they got accepted into all 8 institutions. This of course takes away spots from other worthy students who might have gotten in as well on their own merits, but are now put on a long waiting list until some student opts for Brown over Princeton.
It does seem silly to apply to all of the Ivies. Back in the day (way too far back!), when I applied to colleges, I had a few Ivies on the list but had no desire to apply to them all. They are so dramatically different from one another (e.g. Cornell vs. Harvard) that there were some which didn't interest me in the least. Must be for bragging rights alone.
I’d say 30-40 years ago this might have been an impressive feat, but with today’s social media etc. So how do we know that these fine schools are not in this together? I mean these are the same schools that turned out some pretty rotten people from Wall Street to the Whitehouse.
It’s good to be skeptical and not belly up to the bar so quickly to consume the Flavor Aid.
There was this girl who was in the same High School graduating class as myself. She got accepted into Harvard, but instead opted for a middle of the road non-flagship state university because they offered her a free ride. I'm not so sure I would have taken that same deal, considering Harvard typically can be pretty generous with their financial aid scholarships as well. Granted it was her own decision to make, but I don't think most people would have opted for the third tier state college if put in the same fortunate position as herself.
The only part I dislike is the massive application send off to several of these fine institutions. I'd assume in their minds that there was some pecking order of schools they would narrow down once they got accepted into all 8 institutions. This of course takes away spots from other worthy students who might have gotten in as well on their own merits, but are now put on a long waiting list until some student opts for Brown over Princeton.
The colleges have a relatively good idea what percentage of kids they offer a slot to will take it. I'm sure there's some variability from year to year but if they have between 10 and 15% of kids decline each year they're not going to only offer to the exact number they want.
There's always one that has to come in with an agenda. Yes, I'm sure ALL the Ivy league schools conspired together to accept these 7 random students to EVERY SINGLE Ivy league school.
Yes, passing over one, to accept another......happens all the time, you think it does not????????
With that, this is the problem with these affirmative action type programs, in that many people, even people of their own class, will often view them as getting into these institutions based on affirmative action, not merit itself even though merit itself may have been the only reason. Clarence Thomas has summarized it well regarding his experience.
No one will know what their qualifications were to get accepted, many will just view them as benefactors of affirmative action.
Many? who are exactly these people you are talking about? For sure not very smart people. Probably people with an IQ lower than 90.
I'm not saying they didn't earn it, but Ivy Leagues do look at ethnic background as a 'plus' for whether or not they get accepted... so it might explain how they got accepted by all 8. Their backgrounds aren't exactly typical Ivy League material, which definitely explains why there was so much interest.
When there's that much competition, the ethnicity thing is a definite advantage... the schools are actually being called out on it lately. Harvard was hit with a lawsuit just last year over discriminatory admissions.
I'm not trying to downplay their achievement, it's just that stories like this reek of 'land of opportunity' propaganda designed to distract people from the growing inequalities in society, and it always rubs me the wrong way.
Also, the Daily Mail is objectively trash.
This. Ivy League schools go out of their way to select "diverse" candidates. Not that these kids aren't probably incredibly intelligent but their backgrounds give them a hand up in the admissions process. A more qualified white male from a blue collar/working class background in West Virginia or Kentucky would have a much harder time getting admitted into an Ivy League school, particularly Harvard, than any of these other kids.
Colleges are looking for diversity, because a diverse student body fosters different viewpoints and creativity. In a globalizing world, these perspectives are increasingly important.
Colleges want more non-Asian minorities because they think differently... wait, isn't that racist?
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