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<p>Undoubtedly this is true. However, the majority of those entertainers / celebrities don’t necessarily have kids who are dying to go to an elite school.</p>
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<p>True! However, I think there would be a certain level of crassness associated with: “Hi, I’m here, I’ve got a 17 yo kid who loves your school, and I have $2 MM hanging out of my pocket, wanna talk turkey?” I think there has to be a lot more subtle courting and delicacy about it, and sort of an unspoken “we both know that this is what we’re doing, but we’re going to pretend that your generous donation and the thumb on the scale of your child’s admission aren’t as connected as they really are.”</p>
<p>You should be grateful for people like this! Without all the donations from rich parents and alumni, Harvard wouldn’t be the great school that it is. Nor would they offer as much financial aid as they do.</p>
<p>It’s like that old joke with the punchline: “We all know what kind of woman you are. Now we’re just trying to set the price.”</p>
<p>I have a friend who is a director of development at U of Chicago. I’ll have to ask her what % of students / applicants represent these scenarios, but I’m going to go out on a limb and say that it’s pretty small, as in less than a dozen per year.</p>
<p>one comment…</p>
<p>“The Price of Amission” by Daniel Golden</p>
<p>“Sure, two million might not get you into Harvard if you had a 2.0 GPA and a 1000 SAT, but will it give you a big advantage - especially if your other core stats (SATs, GPA, ECs) are almost or already up to the mark? Yes, most definitely.”</p>
<p>True.</p>
<p>Price of Admission - a good read to help put the “dream school” mentality into perspective for those who don’t have millions.</p>
<p>The Chosen - for those who want to get a handle on the history of the Ivies before politcal correctness was on anyone’s mind.</p>
<p>Why wouldn’t any school (much less one that recently lost a huge chunk of its endowment) accept a qualified kid who will pay full freight and contribute 2 million to the development fund? It would be bad business not to.</p>
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<p>The elite schools will not lower their standard too much just to accomodate that $2M… I have several relatives that went to MIT, without a hook. They are fully qualified, but, they still have to work so hard just to keep up. I would think a kid with 3.0 gpa and 1800 SAT will flunk out in the first year. That does not do the school or the kid any good.</p>
<p>OTOH, if the kid has a 3.85UW and 2300 SAT but missing some ec’s, they might look the other way.</p>
<p>Just remember, this is America and colleges are businesses. There is a point where large contributions have an effect. But I’m sure the $ number varies from school to school. </p>
<p>My BIL went to top 20 school and graduated @ 20 years ago. His best friend / roommate was a multiple legacy (father, uncle, grandfather) and his family was a MAJOR donor - I’m talking endowed chair sized donations. (Now this family is Forbes 400 rich - not just your run of the mill millionaire.) </p>
<p>I have no idea what the friends stats were, but he is definitely a smart guy. The friend told my BIL that he didn’t have to write any of the required essays - just put his name on the application! This is a school where multiple unique essays are required. </p>
<p>Fast forward, the family continues to support the school - a new dorm has the family name!</p>
<p>Absolutely, CB… If that kind of money we are talking about, basically you are buying the college, you certainly can write your own ticket… however, for 2M, its not enough to make heads turning. It will make my head turn, nevertheless.</p>
<p>btw, your screen name and the unique essays gave away the college, its not hard to figure out which.</p>
<p>When my son went to a private k-12 school, a legacy admission whose mother and grandmother worked at the school was advised that the school was not a good match for him. I’m sure it pained the school terribly, since this family has been so heavily associated with this school for a long time, and has not only donated generously to the annual funds and other campaigns, but been active members of the school community.</p>
<p>But they were right. The child had some issues that the school could not well address. He would have had a lot of trouble keeping up academically, and he really was not a good match at all for the school. The parents saw it too, though they wished, oh so wished, that maybe something could be done, an exception made, they would get help, a tutor. But they did support the school’s decision as disappointed as they were.</p>
<p>More than 20 years later, the young man has completed college and looks like he could have gone to any school. He just had a rough beginning and needed to be in a looser, less academically rigorous environment for him to bloom. A scholar, he never was. and he barely graduated from college. but has a good job, and is doing just fine. But he was not the right material for that school. This happens often, and sometimes the parents do get angry, miffed, hurt to a point that they no longer want to associate with the school. But most of the time they know well what the requirements are for the school and if their children can meet them. Many times they do not bother to have their kids apply if the gap is too wide. I know that Carl Icahn is a great Princeton supporter, but his daughter did not even apply there.</p>
<p>Carl Icahn’s daughter probably did not want to attend his alma mater. I am sure if she did admission would not have been a problem. Gee, I wonder where she ended up going??? Let me guess… your local community college:)</p>
<p>There are many parents who can afford to drop 2 million for their child to attend an ivy. Once you add up the seats that are designated for the legacy, big wallet Daddy, and recruited athlete…it truly is a lottery. Students need to realize this and not get down on themselves if they don’t gain entrance to these institutions.</p>