What has changed with College Admissions since Varsity Blues ?

To refresh your memory, in 2019, a scandal arose over a criminal conspiracy to influence undergraduate admissions decisions at several top American universities.Rick Singer, the shamed college counselor, synonymous with what is known as Operation Varsity Blues, is going to jail for 3 and a half years—proving that “crime doesn’t pay”. This video recaptures the news the day the scandal broke. But what has happened since the scandal was birthed?

These seven stages initiated from the epicenter of Varsity Blues:

1. An Awakening — Most parents and students were aware of how competitive college admissions had become at top tier schools. But Varsity Blues uncovered the sheer panic that precipitated those with means—the rich and famous—to step so low as to cheat and bribe their way into college.       If the entitled were freaking out, that confirmed just how difficult college admissions would be for everyone.
2. The Reaction: Close the Loopholes — Colleges didn’t want the press they were likely to get, so any backdoor privileges, special handshakes or any semblance of impropriety were shut down. Any candidate applying for a sports position had to follow new procedures, as did the respective college staff.
3. Skepticism sets in: Don’t trust the College Counselor — Was every college counselor like Rick Singer? If he couldn’t help students without cheating, what was the average family going to do? It’s possible that some who would have otherwise gone to a college counselor chose to go it alone.
4. The COVID Factor — The pandemic initiated a nationwide test optional blanket covering nearly every school in the country. Students applied to schools that otherwise would be out of reach if they were to submit their test scores.
5. Application Growth — More applications at top tier schools triggered even more selectivity. Colleges got laser focused with their admit rates and yield.
6. Admit Rates Drop — The reality of single digit admit rates kicks in and morphs in a viral fashion. Once parents heard stories or witnessed their own children getting denied and deferred, they panicked and applied to even more schools, accelerating selectivity and lowering their own children’s admit rates.
7. Reception Towards Receiving College Advice Returns – As parents get confused and frustrated with the difficult college process, some begin to seek help from counselors for professional college advice.

While few could have predicted the impact that this scandal, followed swiftly by the COVID-19 pandemic, could have on college admissions, here are six steps to take that address the current admissions situation:

DECEMBER: A MONTH OF JOY AND ANXIETY

With thoughts of a winter break in sight, December is a month filled with academic notifications for a great number of students of all ages. The three most powerful outside measurements of a student’s abilities that impact December are:

What to do after early college applications are submitted

Congratulations for those students who pushed the send button in their Common App screen and saw the online confetti fly.   What’s next? The natural tendency is to think that everything is complete, and complacency can set in after what has been an exhaustive admission process. It is not uncommon for students to want to be "done" with the application effort regardless of the consequences of not staying fully engaged with the process. 

This is probably the most competitive process that they have ever faced and one in which they have little control over.  So, understanding what can be done and doing so with a cool, level head can reap some great rewards. Students and parents should remain engaged until the day they enroll with a deposit and consider the following:

Do You Know this Union College?

Union College is in upstate New York in a city with a very distinctive name – Schenectady. Union was founded in 1795 and in addition to holding to its liberal arts roots, it has been quietly evolving and adapting to today’s student needs. Union is regarded as one of the few small liberal arts colleges that has a solid balance of liberal arts and engineering. Union now offers an Environmental Engineering Major and is bringing back Civil Engineering. With only 3 classes per trimester, students really get a chance to know their professors. For intro classes, the average class size is 21 students; for upper-level classes the average is 14 students. 80% of Union Students complete faculty-mentored research or creative work and 60% of students study abroad. 85% of students complete at least one internship. 97% of Union graduates are employed, in grad school or pursuing a post-grad fellowship within 6 months of graduation.

8, 10,12,15, 15+ ?

I get this question more this year than ever before. Unfortunately, there is no answer that applies to all students. There is a wholesale change happening in college admissions that needs to be considered. There are so many different categories of admissions–Regular, Rolling, Early Action, Priority, Restricted Early Action, Early Decision, Early Decision 2–it is no wonder that parents and students are confused. But, more importantly is the fact that this confusion can impact a student’s admission’s chances. 

College Admissions is in a truly outrageous situation at the present time. The various admission categories have been morphing for years and when combined with the Covid/Test Optional catalyst, application growth has been explosive. This has resulted in what some may view as irrational behavior. 

For example, when parents learn that Mary didn’t get into any of the 12 schools she applied to, one conclusion that has been floated is that Mary didn’t apply to enough colleges. So, the logical next step is to apply to even more schools, maybe up to 15+. We can all understand how that will increase the volume of applications and lower admit rates. 

But what is even more disturbing is the perfect storm that has also developed for some savvy colleges. With more applications floating into the system, schools are looking for better ways to ensure that their yield is reduced–even as applications increase.  It appears that they have succeeded and nearly perfected their ability to gauge a student's true interest. Even while ignoring the increase in applications, and noting that the number of seats remains the same, some top colleges have lowered the absolute number of students that they admit.

So, what is the answer?