If the universities would simply set some minimum thresholds for each pool and commit themselves to TRANSPARENCY around those thresholds, the process would become fairer, more orderly, and vastly more efficient for both applicants, adcoms, and high schools.
This would not require doing away with “holistic” admissions-- that would still describe the second stage of the decision process-- but it would require transparency around a) definitions of the pools and b) threshold stats-- SAT/ACT and GPA especially-- required of each pool.
For example, Elite College could say, “We require a minimum score of 700 on the SAT Math section of all applicants who are not recruited athletes or members of the following groups…”
For the athletes and the named groups who are exempt from the 700 Math threshold, Elite College would then publish the formula for their Academic Index that is used to evaluate the non-academic pools, and state clearly that applicants from those non-academic pools who fail to meet the AI threshold will not be considered for admission.
Elite College could go on to reveal the % of applicants who will be required to pay full freight, and state the historical 25-75th percentile scores of that cohort as well as of the cohort that receives aid.
Doing the above would have multiple benefits. Transparency would help everyone to understand and accept the logic of the admissions process. It would also make the process much more efficient by using actual thresholds to deter from applying tens of thousands of unhooked, non-wealthy middle and upper middle-class kids whose actual chances are zero or next to zero. Those kids could focus their energies on other schools where they meet or exceed the published thresholds for the unhooked and non-wealthy.
Finally, it would greatly help recruitment of high-achieving under-represented groups. No marketing expenditure, no costly and inefficient “outreach” in the form of adcom reps jumping on planes or driving to schools would be required. Simply publicize the threshold score and then identify SAT and ACT takers who actually meet the thresholds and encourage them to apply.
The result of the above would be to cut the # of applications by more than half, increase the admission rate, and spare everyone enormous amounts of time, money, sweat and tears.