<p>Just to go back to our conversation, I didn’t take it as you dissing Tulane. I was playing along with you. No, there is no major difference between 11% and 16%. The major point was that Tulane isn’t using the strategy talked about in the article to look better stats wise or crush the hopes of marginal students. They are simply trying to (and succeeding) turn what was a devastating situation into a major improvement from where they were even before the disaster. It required some hugely controversial steps, such as eliminating more than half the engineering majors and collapsing the venerable Newcomb College into the structure of the university (they have had to fight a long lawsuit on that one and just won Round 2). But it has been a tremendous success, so I have to think their attitude, at least for now, is “why change our admissions strategy?”. Eventually they might, but it is working for them. BTW, even New Orleans is better than it was. Has it progressed as fast as Tulane? No, it surely hasn’t. But the schools are much better than they were, people are far more involved, Tulane is helping to take health care back into the neighborhoods, and the new mayor has, I think, a real chance at cleaning up the police department. I have to say it I think the vibe is way better than it was pre-Katrina.</p>
<p>Anyway, what does any of this have to do with U Chicago? Only this, I think. Tulane’s admissions experience has become well known to other institutions, especially the part regarding changing the very character of the school in some ways. I think that is what the people from Chicago were trying to say in the article. By opening up the admissions process somewhat and attracting more applicants, they can “tweak” or maybe even more than tweak the nature of the student body somewhat while retaining what makes U Chicago the unique and wonderful school it is, all without losing any academic quality. Frankly, I would worry if others were not paying attention to the success of the Tulane experiment. It takes some courage to ignore the stats if they go in the opposite direction of the conventional wisdom, but in the end the school benefits. If having a low yield were all that detrimental, how come Tulane gets record numbers of apps, record entering class sizes, all with the best academic stats in the schools history? And OH BTW, the retention rate for both freshman and juniors also set records for Tulane this year, at 91.1% and 85% respectively, if I recall correctly. Not the stratospheric numbers of Chicago, but still very good.</p>
<p>So my hat is off to Chicago for not sitting on their ass and becoming complacent. Universities need fresh thinking and new dynamics from time to time, like anyplace.</p>