- Moderator
- #441
When an elite university admits a C student from a rich family, like George W. Bush, the rich family is likely to make generous contributions to the university. That cannot be said of a beneficiary of affirmative action.
The argument Lisa makes this:
“less qualified“ black students take spots from better qualified, “hardworking” white students. This unfair and wrong.
Yet a much larger proportion of slots actual goes to legacy students. That hits all the points Lisa makes. It means better qualified students lose out.
Yet you justify it it by saying they make generous contributions. They are buying a slot at a prestigious college their kid may not have earned.
I fail to see a difference other than one is acceptable and the other is not.
Also, I am not sure that there are more legacy students at elite universities than affirmative action beneficiaries. I would like to see some statistics.
Legacy College Admissions Come Under Fire In New Report
Legacy admissions - the practice where a college gives preferential admissions treatment to the children of its alumni - is facing intense criticism in a new report that documents the extent of the practice and calls for policies that would curtail or even end it.
www.forbes.com
Legacy, Athlete, and Donor Preferences Disproportionately Benefit White Applicants, per Analysis | News | The Harvard Crimson
Forty-three percent of white admits to Harvard College are athletes, legacies, children of faculty, or members of a hand selected list curated by top administrators, according to working papers by Students for Fair Admissions-hired expert witness Peter S. Arcidiacono.
www.thecrimson.com
“That kind of blew my mind a little bit,” said Harvard Graduate School of Education professor Natasha Kumar Warikoo.
The authors found that a white, non-ALDC applicant with a 10 percent chance of admission would see a five-fold increase in their chance of admissions if they were a legacy; more than a seven-fold increase if they were on the Dean’s List; and would be admitted with “near certainty” if they were a recruited athlete.
The paper included several counterfactuals to simulate the admissions process without preferences for legacies or athletes. In both scenarios, the number of white admits decreased. For example, only one quarter of white ALDC admits would have been admitted had they been treated as non-ALDC applicants.
Data provide insights into advantages and qualifications of legacy applicants | Inside Higher Ed
New data show -- across national sample -- they are admitted at much higher rates than other applicants. But the vast majority also fit or exceed the academic profile of colleges to which they are admitted.
www.insidehighered.com