Dear Mr. Bradshaw,
How do top colleges decide who gets admitted? I am planning to apply to Harvard, Yale, MIT and Stanford next year. I am concerned about the role demographics play in the admissions process.
Signed,
Concerned Student
Dear Concerned Student,
There is no question that it is getting more difficult for students to gain admission to an elite college or university. The acceptance rate at all top colleges is tightening, well into single digits.
Let’s look at how things used to be. Ted Kennedy and George W. Bush made it into Harvard and Yale, respectively, mainly because their fathers were notable alumni. Although one might not call Kennedy and Bush the “best and the brightest” of their generation — to borrow a term — they were born into wealth and celebrity and were white males. It should be noted that there were no diversity regulations in those days. Many students were turned away from Harvard, Yale and Princeton, while less-qualified legacies were admitted. Today, the number of admitted legacies is falling, and lawsuits are expected to put an end to this historic practice. The Harvard Crimson reported in 2011 that legacies face a nearly 30 percent acceptance rate — almost four times higher that the main Harvard acceptance rate. Almost every student must now meet the same academic standards. Other changes have made white males less dominant at top schools. Males must now compete against female applicants, and most schools are now at parity with male and female admissions.
In Harvard’s incoming class of 2021, women constitute 49.2 percent of newly admitted students. Asian-American students make up 22.2 percent, African-Americans 14.6 percent, Latinos 11.6 percent, Native Americans 1.9 percent, and Native Hawaiians 0.5 percent.
Elite colleges steadfastly refuse to expand the size of the freshman class to accommodate the growing number of qualified applicants. The faculty opposed Harvard’s past president Larry Summers, when he wanted to increase freshman enrollment and Harvard’s new president has been mum on this issue. Admission preference is now given to under-represented demographic groups. Students typically admitted under this policy may have lower academic qualifications than students admitted under regular standards. According to Harvard and other top schools, about 25 percent of the student body is in this category.
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There are increasing numbers of well-qualified applicants in every admissions category. High schools do a good job of preparing students for top colleges. The number of students taking Advanced Placement classes and scoring in the top five percent on admission tests has increased two-fold over the 1980s. No matter which demographic category you fall into, the competition is getting tougher.
So what is the defining factor? Top grades and test scores still count the most. Your high school extracurricular involvement is also important. In my 15 years interviewing candidates for Harvard, I always found that there was “something about” the students who got in that stood out, no matter the category in which they fell. The school’s application essays always play an important role and could be the tiebreaker. When the interviews were over and I wrote my evaluations, the one defining quality that set some students apart was that the high scorers seemed to have a grasp of the big picture and concrete career goals. The top students were successful in high school and wanted to succeed in the larger world, not just in a small community. This is what will set you apart and put you at the top of the admissions list.
Gerald Bradshaw is an international college admissions consultant with Bradshaw College Consulting in Crown Point.