College Admissions Scandal
I recently came across a story (I originally saw it on Drudge Report), about UCLA and alleged preferential treatment in admissions given to large financial donors to the school. The student newspaper, the Daily Bruin, actually broke the story first. (Which reminds me - why doesn't The Hoya do investigative journalism like this? They only do reactionary stuff, but I digress...)
Anyway, the story in the Daily Bruin basically found that applicants related to donors who gave six-figure gifts were automatically advanced in the admissions process over other students, despite lower test scores and grades. I think the last line of the article (a quote from a UCLA alumnus), sums up pretty much how I feel about this:
"I’m worried about students who don’t come from money, who work their ass off and think, ‘If I work hard, if I do everything right, I should get in,’” McDonald said. “But all of a sudden, guess what? There’s no spot for you because someone else took it because mom and dad have money.”
This story really makes me angry. I've been saying it for several years now (pretty much since I started at the University of Richmond School of Law), that universities are no longer places of education first. Instead, they are places of business, concerned with how much money they bring in from donors, students, and grants from the federal government. It doesn't have to be that way, but it is.
That being said, I guarantee this isn't only happening at UCLA. I am sure there are preferential admissions for students whose parents have money or make large donations at other schools. I'm primarily thinking of two that I attended (and am attending) - University of Richmond and Georgetown. So, I'm not privy to information as to whether my allegation is actually true, but I bet it happens. Of course, money isn't the only reason people are given preferential treatment in admissions decisions (only the most important), but I think other reasons are probably related to money in some manner. For instance, if someone well-known in politics had a son or daughter who decided to apply to one of these schools, I think they'd get in, even if they were poor students. Because, at some point, that person going to the school could mean more money to the school (from a donation).
This may sound like sour grapes, but it isn't. I've gotten into the schools I've wanted to, and am satisfied with them. But the fact that I had to work my butt off to do it, while somone else gets their admission bought for them is just not right in my book.
So, that's my rant on that. Maybe someday money won't buy everything.