35 Year old college guide-book

[ihs76]

Going rate for tuition in the Ivies was about $3500/year in mid-late 1970s. UChicago was considered a bargain at about $3000 as I recall.

IIRC, my father's salary (jr faculty at an Ivy) was about $18,000/yr. The said Ivy did offer free tuition to offspring, and 1/2 tuition for other Ivies. All the Ivies had had reciprocal free tuition for Professors offspring, but switched to 50% off sometime not long before this period.

[ucbalumnus]

According to CPI Inflation Calculator , $1.00 in 1975 is equivalent to $4.27 now, adjusted for inflation.

But those tuitions listed in #3 are still much lower than today after multiplying by 4.27.

Regarding SAT scores, be aware that the scores were recentered in 1995. The conversions are given here: SAT Equivalence Tables . So those pre-1995 SAT scores are equivalent to higher scores as reported for today's SAT. An example would be that a 1400 V+M then is equivalent to a 1470 CR+M today.

[babbitt]

I'd love to hear about Vassar's admission stats, since that'd be only 6 years after they went co-ed!

[compmom]

I graduated from high school in 1969. Decades ago, admissions to the schools mentioned were often limited in terms of social class. Financial aid and racial or socioeconomic diversity were not factors as yet. The applicant pool was therefore smaller, and more people from that limited applicant pool were admitted, raising the percentage admitted. I would venture a guess that for Ivies and top LAC's, the majority of students came from private schools.

I recently looked at my high school transcript. I was ranked #1 in a rigorous private school but my grades were mostly in the 80's. Imagine that today! We had never heard of gpa's. We didn't prep for SAT's either, but were told testing was strictly for "aptitude."

Of course, at that time, if a male student didn't want to go, he would be drafted and end up in Vietnam. Different times indeed. So the less privileged kids ended up in Southeast Asia rather than Cambridge or wherever.

I did well with admissions but things were so chaotic I chose not to go at all. I am glad my kids are entering young adulthood without those pressures, despite the cost of college and the recession.

[bovertine]

Unfortunately there are some schools for which the authors have no testing data and Vassar is one of those. It does have a 62 percent acveptance rate listed and is called Highly selective. In 1975 apparently it had 650 men ans 1500 women and cost 3400 dollars.
I guess some schools didn't release some data to the authors. Bowdoin also gives no SAT data but I think it was yesy optional.

[Creekland]

I'm enjoying this thread - thanks for posting!

MIT data?

[bovertine]

^^^
Here's what they list for MIT-
Most selective.
44% acceptance rate.
All freshman graduated in top fifth of high school class.
For SAT they have a breakdown-
Math - 85% scored over 700.
Verbal - 80 % over 600, 30% over 700.

Tution and fees $3700.

A lot of these schools with high score students (for the time) appear tol have acceptance rates over 30%, at least according to these authors.. I've got to believe that pre-common ap students were just more discerning in the number of aps they sent, and just didn't tend to apply to places they had little chance of getting in.

[jym626]

I'd love to hear Vassar's admission stats too, but because I chose it over Penn back in 1971.

[emilybee]

The high acceptance rates back then were because students self selected. You applied to schools you thought you had an extremely good chance of being accepted to. Having to type each application was one reason. No one was going to do several of those for school they likely had no chance of getting into. I knew, for instance, there was no way I would be accepted at my mother's alma mater (Smith) or any of the other top tier schools so applying never crossed my mind. I looked one tier down (Skidmore, for example,) but for some reason I had my heart set on going to school in Colorado so went to CU, instead.

I was also at a very rigorous private high school and my transcript was littered with B's and C's. That was no big deal either. Only the geniuses got A's.

[NC Mom]

How about UVA?

[bovertine]

racial or socioeconomic diversity were not factors as yet.

In 1969 maybe not, but almost every listing in this 1975 book talks about the schools seeking an ethnically and geographically diverse student body. Many of the listings have minority percentage listed. And remember the Bakke case was in 1978. So a lot changed over those ten years apparently.

As far as financial aid, they list those statistics as well. For Harvard, for example, it states that 70% of students recieved financial aid, average amount $2500.

[bovertine]

How about UVA?

UVA highly selective.
43% applicants selected for all schools.
It then breakes it down by school. I'll give Arts and Sciences.
40% acceptance.
Math SAT ave - 660 men and women, 28% scored over 700.
Verbal SAT ave - 600 men, 630 women, 11% scored over 700
75% of students in top fifth of high school class.
$632 tuition in-state.1500 out of state.

[anniezz]

I remember Cass & Birnbaum - with six kids growing up and applying to college between 1969 and and 1981, we had 2 additions! And I think Barrons.

Without the internet and the common app, it was the only way you knew about admissions statistics.
I used to pour over that book as a kid. (along with the Funk & Wagnalls encyclopedias!)

I think the SAT has gone through 2 revisions since then, so those scores would be much higher today. I think that the earlier scores allowed for more distinction at the top - hence Cal Tech's higher score range.

The tuition differences between now and then really make me shake my head. How did we get to a place where a college education costs so much more of a family's income?

[mathmom]

Harvard in 1975 had lots of public school students - can't find the info on line, but I think it was 30-40% at least.

Not only did you have to type each application separately, Brown insisted on writing your essay by hand!

[bovertine]

^^^
In 1975 64% public school students.