<p>I am a proponent of affirmative action, so please don’t misinterpret my posts. Many schools practice affirmative action but they do so differently. In my experience, the Ivies accepts only those URMs who are very close to their typical standards (excepting, of course, football/basketball players and children of famous people), but Stanford truly digs deeper and accepts URMs who do not have very good SAT scores, grades, etc. They don’t accept idiots, of course, but they are willing to take chances on URMs that they believe have promise. I don’t see other top schools taking these same chances. I think this is a recent shift (my GC told me that Stanford started doing this after a new law in California prevented the UCs from using affirmative action) and I applaud Stanford for doing this, even though they didn’t accept me (or any of my friends with insane stats). Stanford is one school where a URM with less than stellar grades and SAT scores still has a chance. For those lucky enough to get in, I think Stanford would be a wonderful opportunity, and I congratulate them. For those ORMs who are bitter by this, just apply to 10-12 top schools and it won’t matter what Stanford decides. You might still make it, but even if you don’t you will have the chance to study at another great university, so don’t sweat it and don’t offend others. Thanks.</p>