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<p>My short answer is “No.” If colleges could admit a better class using a two-minute brain scan or a blood test, so be it. There is also the question of how much one learns from a second or third essay. There are so many essay-writing camps and editorial services that specialize in helping students write that it is not clear how much one learns from the essays. I happen to think that a single essay that is unique to the college can be useful, but beyond that there are real tradeoffs. The admissions officers can give much more attention to a single 250-word essay than two 500-word essays. This may be a case where less is more. </p>
<p>The important thing is that Swarthmore is not changing standards. If they were messing with the honors program, say, that would be cause for concern, but they are just changing the application. </p>
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<p>I have often wondered the same. Similar schemes are in use in Boston and New York to assign students to public schools. Al Roth and Lloyd Shapley won a Nobel prize for their work on such matching schemes. They have been used for years to match medical students to residencies. </p>