<p>“I didn’t observe that any such assumptions were made, in fact I think he made it clear that he strongly supports a well rounded view of admissions that looks at all aspects and talents on ones application including not just academics. His point was that he opposes the idea that a school has one set of standards for what ‘well rounded application’ means for someone they recruit to play on a team and another set of standards for a ‘well rounded application’ for everyone else. Everyone should go through the same admissions process. I fail to see why some people are so strongly oppose to that simple idea.”</p>
<p>This is where we need to differentiate between well rounded individuals and well rounded classes. Again, many prestigious US universities are looking for a well rounded class, but love applicants that have a passion. We have heard that time and time again. Applicants with a passion for a sport that is strong enough to make them a competive Division I athlete is pretty impressive, just as applicant with some other passion that make them nationally recognized. Think of it as a point system. Admittees need 100 points. Perfect test scores and GPA get 80 points, 2100 SATs and 4.0 get 60. Internationally recognized talents and passions get 80 points, while those known nationally in their field get 60. (There are very few recruited athletes that are not known nationally in their field.) In either case you need something else to get you in, but its certainly a head start.</p>