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Hilarious Daily Show Video: Sean Spicer vs. the Kids

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wheat-dogg, raker of forests, master of steam4/06/2017 2:28:22 am PDT

re: #74 Anymouse

Yup, the heaviest weight is given to the extra-cirriculum activity known as “money.”

Speaking as someone who’s played a role in Ivy League admissions, this is not entirely true. I can only speak for my alma mater’s process, but applications are sorted into A, B, C piles based at first on test scores. Then the admissions officers review GPAs and the kind of course taken in HS, extracurriculars, personal essays, and recommendations. Everything at this point is need-blind. Star athletes and “legacy” students do get some special attention, but if their marks and SATs suck donkey balls, they will not be offered a place. Rich “C” students are often admitted though, because happy rich parents make for happy rich donors. OTOH, I know some rich “C” students who were kicked out of school for goofing off and flunking their classes.

The idea that money can buy you a place in a top university seriously rubs me the wrong way, because the system is designed to discourage that kind of bribery. Since the 1990s (IIRC) Princeton began offering generous financial aid to middle-class kids who were wary of ginormous student loans. The university has a fat endowment, so the trustees said let’s give that money to students so they can come here. Otherwise, the student body would have ended up once again as a collection of very rich kids mixed with a smattering of full-scholarship kids, and hardly any middle class kids.

The other Ivies cried a river of tears when Princeton inaugurated this policy. Then they fell in line just to stay competitive.