Sally_Rubenstone

Joie Jager-Hyman, author of Fat Envelope Frenzy (Harper 2008) has just told me that a new college-admissions reality TV show is in the works. It will based on her book, which follows five high school students through their quest for Harvard admission. (See CC discussion here: Fat Envelope Frenzy - New Book)

Of course, the erstwhile high school students who starred in Fat Envelope Frenzy are already halfway through their college careers (at Harvard ... or not). So the show's producers are seeking current Ivy wannabes to fill those roles.

So ... if you are ...

-a high school junior right now

-living in the Metropolitan New York City area (NYC or nearby in CT or NJ)

-planning to apply to Ivy League colleges (and think you've got a decent shot at getting in)

-willing to let the world watch you go through this process

Then read this information below, and complete and submit the questionnaire (with a photo) by MARCH 1:

NOTE: It's fine to post comments on this thread but PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THE CASTING CALL HERE. USE THE EMAIL ADDRESS AND QUESTIONNAIRE LISTED BELOW

1. Answer these questions in a separate e-mail ... not on College Confidential!


QUESTIONNAIRE:

(Please keep answers to one paragraph or less)

NAME: ________________________

AGE: ___

CITY: __________________________

SAT SCORES (if you have them, broken down by section and/or by subject for Subject Tests. Use PSAT's if you don't have SAT's yet):

____

____


____


WHAT WOULD ACCEPTANCE TO A TOP SCHOOL MEAN TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY?



WHAT’S YOUR PLAN OF ATTACK FOR GETTING INTO THE RIGHT SCHOOL?



FOR YOU, WHAT’S THE MOST DAUNTING PART OF THE COLLEGE APPLICATION PROCESS?




WHAT EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES ARE YOU CURRENTLY INVOLVED IN?



USING EITHER A CELEBRITY OR HISTORICAL FIGURE AS A COMPARISON, WHO WOULD PLAY YOU IN THE STORY OF YOUR LIFE? WHY?




HOW DOES YOUR DESIRE TO GO TO A TOP COLLEGE AFFECT YOUR FRIENDSHIPS AND RELATIONSHIPS WITH YOUR FAMILY?




2: Send your responses to:

collegeadmissionsshow@**********

Be sure to include your name, contact info and please attach a clear photo of yourself.

Remember ... you must reply by March 1, 2010

Kei-o-lei

oh noooooooooooo!

CC Ivy wannabes on MTV??????

Kei

TheYankInLondon

HA! When I thread the thread title I thought it said MIT not MTV!

theskylitup

*Shudder*

This is going to be like the gag inducing NYC Prep.

Clearly only the most narcissistic and attention hungry will apply, resulting in major second-hand embarrassment for Harvard (and fellow applicants). Sigh.

oldfort

I wonder if schools would be harder on the applicants because millions of people would be watching.

thebigcheese121

I really like the "Maybe" in parenthesis. You could get rejected by MTV as well as Harvard. How good is that!

Sally_Rubenstone

I actually jumped the gun when I mentioned MTV in my initial post. (That's why you won't see it up there now.) The true scoop is that MTV writers and producers are working on this, but it's not officially an MTV show ... at least not yet.

I can certainly understand that many eyes will roll at the thought of reality TV invading the admissions process and of desperate Ivy-angsters baring their souls (well, at least their application essays) in the hope of earning an admissions edge.

But I suspect that this program won't end up being Kourtney & Khloé Take Kornell, and I do feel that it could have some socially redeeming content. Each year I see thousands of wonderful high school seniors--kids I would be proud to call my own--get turned away by Ivy League institutions. In many cases, I could have predicted, with little or no uncertainty, that these candidates had no chance at all at the most hyper-competitive colleges.

So perhaps an insider's view into the Ivy application and selection process can provide not just a reality show but also a reality check to help students (and their parents) make the best possible college matches.

corey91

Hmm...I wonder if this would give you a better shot at getting into harvard or reduce your chances. Obviously Harvard would know which students would be participating in the show. I would think that Harvard wouldn't let in all of them into the school so as to maintain their reputation. Even if the show hosted students that if on their own would have gotten in they wouldn't if they were on the show.

TheYankInLondon

The more I think about it, the more I think that it's an awful idea for Reality TV but a great idea for a documentary (preferably one that is as far away from MTV as possible)

WhatsamattaU

Is this really in the best interest of a 17/18 year old's emotional well-being? Of course, it might aid them in their quest for admittance. Last year I recall reading about one of the NYT's featured HS bloggers getting accepted to Princeton after being placed on their wait list. She got a phone call from Princeton on her cell. She was going to attend Rutgers, if I recall correctly, after a LAC (Vassar?) didn't give her sufficient financial aid. Think of the publicity P got from that blog. Lots of people did not get the call. Think it had anything to do with her blog. Cynic? Build the media frenzy. Start getting people to look at 17/18 year old videos in support of their applications (Tufts). No, let's go a step beyond that even and follow them in the process to get into Harvard, after vetting them of course to make sure they're viable candidates.

MilwDad

Frankly this sounds hilarious to me, because if done authentically it would show kids studying their rear ends off, which is not exactly compelling TV.

Many years ago when I was in college I worked a lot of security jobs and got to know a lot of policemen. I'll never forget one telling me that "Adam 12" was the "best" cop show on TV. I was astonished. This was in the days of Kojak and Starsky & Hutch and all that 70s flash and dash. I said to the guy "But Adam 12 is really boring." He responded: "Exactly. We spend 98% of out time riding around in our cars, filling out reports or talking to idiots."

"Reality" TV of the life of an authentic "ivy league hopeful?" That'll be the day.

WhatsamattaU

Here's the real info to get to applicants. And it doesn't take a reality tv show. Heard this at a presentation by a former AdCom officer from Princeton. re why it is so difficult for an unhooked applicant to get into selective schools (read, Ivies, top 20s) these days. 50% of the class is already filled (even if there is no Ed as at P and H) with legacies, development , recruited athletes, URMs, etc So whatever the size of the class, reduce it by 50 %, then 50% again because the selectives are generally 50/50 M/F. And some percentage are international students, although some of these are hooked. So your 8%(Fill in the blank here, whatever the published admit rate-lower each year) is actually significantly less than that 8%. But they'd love to take your application fee. Give it a shot.

SVMMom

To me, this would be a much more compelling and informative show if it was approached from a Harvard Adcom's end. Now I know Harvard would never agree to this, but.....

Have Harvard pick out six very divergent admits early on that they felt were great fits.

Then, follow these students around for a month or two and see what their lives are like.
Dramatic finish would be showing them getting their acceptances.

soozievt

Is the show just chronicling their journey or is there a "prize" at the end?

I think it would be interesting to watch. I do sometimes wonder, however, for the students who are followed in a long term news story or on a show like this, so publicly, if it hurts or helps them.

PS....like Survivor or American Idol, does someone get cut every week?

anothermom2

^Oh soozie, let's hope they don't get cut each week . Unless you were going for some kind of career in which publicity is desirable, this would seem like a dreadful idea for the students. Someone is bound to get rejected in an incredibly public way, and unless you are tough as nails, that's got to hurt quite a bit.

I think a good documentary on the review process that applicants get at top schools would be of interest, and probably get good ratings too if done well. Never happen...