The recent announcement by Amherst College that it would end “legacy admissions preference” has made this a hot topic. Legacy admissions is the practice of favoring the children (and often the grandchildren and siblings) of alumni in the college admissions process. Its use is widespread.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, as of 2020, more than half of the nation’s top 250 universities reported taking legacy status into consideration during their application review process. All eight Ivy League institutions were included in this number, as were Georgetown, Duke, Swarthmore, Middlebury, Tufts, and scores of other elite colleges and universities.
A small number of highly selective schools openly oppose favoring legacy students, including MIT, California Institute of Technology, Cooper Union, Johns Hopkins, Texas A & M, and now Amherst College.
Some schools make a distinction between “primary legacy,” where an applicant reports a parent as an alumnus, and “secondary legacy,” whereby a grandparent or sibling is an alumnus. Stanford University and UNC, for example, only take primary legacy into consideration.
Some universities, such as University of Pennsylvania and Cornell, only consider legacy when students apply Early Decision, pledging to attend if accepted.
Legacy preference, at some schools, can offer a huge boost. At Harvard, 36% of the Class of 2022 has a relative who previously attended the University. (Harvard’s overall acceptance hovers around 6%.) Other Ivies are close behind, as University of Pennsylvania and Brown report upwards of 33% legacies, more than double their admit rate. Princeton has been known to admit over 30% of legacy applicants.
The reasons supporting legacy admissions are many. According to College Transitions, “Institutions typically defend legacy admissions as a way to respect tradition and acknowledge those who helped to lay the foundation on which the university is built.” The term “intergenerational continuity” is often used by those who favor the practice. It’s also likely that colleges and universities expect greater financial donations from families looking towards their alma mater to educate their children.
Those opposed to legacy admissions believe that it disadvantages minority and first-generation college students, while rewarding those who already have privileged upbringings. Nearly a third of legacy freshmen at Harvard hail from half-a-million- dollar households, with a similar statistic cited for Princeton.
Regardless of one’s feeling on the fairness of the practice, students looking to take advantage of their legacy status should list their alumni connections on their college application.
Susan Alaimo is the founder and director of Collegebound Review that, for the past 25 years, has offered PSAT/SAT® preparation and private college advising by Ivy League educated instructors. Visit CollegeboundReview.com or call 908-369-5362
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