In the college admissions process, "legacy" applicants are students with some kind of familial tie to a university. An applicant normally has legacy status at a college if a member of the applicant's immediate family attends or attended the college, but at certain schools it might also mean a grandparent, aunt or uncle, and cousin. Some institutions restrict their consideration to "primary" legacy, meaning children of alumni; others are happy to extend it in any direction, and include both undergraduate and graduate alumni.
Last month, most highly selective colleges and universities announced their admissions rates for next fall's freshman class. Many schools saw their rates decline to record lows, and a number of universities had admissions rates under 10%, including Stanford, Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, Yale, Penn, Brown, Duke, Northwestern, and Vanderbilt. In such an ultra-competitive environment, students with one or both parents, siblings, or grandparents who have graduated from the same elite school should definitely consider taking advantage of their standing as legacies.
At most top-tier institutions, legacy status is a measurable plus when you're seeking to use every possible advantage to gain a competitive edge. UChicago meets the full-demonstrated financial need of every admitted student through a need-based financial aid award that includes no loan expectation. Each financial aid award is tailored to the student and family's particular financial profile; we require a few forms and documents in order to offer students an appropriate package. Although domestic applicants may apply for financial aid at any time, we recommend that they apply for aid when they apply for admission in order to receive an aid decision in a timely manner. UChicago does not charge an application fee to students who indicate that they intend to apply for financial aid.
It is a nonbinding program for students who have thoroughly researched their college options and have decided that Princeton is their first choice. They may not apply to an early program at any other private college or university, but they may apply early to any public institution, as long as the decision is nonbinding. Admitted students will have until May 1 to respond and may choose to apply for regular decision at other institutions, enabling them to compare their admission and financial aid offers with those of other colleges and universities. The undergraduate admission office values the legacy connections of applicants and encourages students to detail their university ties accurately on their applications. The admission staff and Office of Alumni Engagement work closely to document legacy applicants through the admission-review process.
During the initial application review, an applicant's legacy status is noted on the review sheet and admission evaluators are instructed to consider the affiliation. In addition, during the committee-review process, there is a separate committee that does an additional review of legacy applicants. Finally, the deans of admission for Emory College and Oxford College closely monitor legacy decisions throughout the entire process. Rick Fitzgerald, a spokesman, told Inside Higher Ed that legacy status is used for only two purposes.
He said that the college does want to acknowledge family relationships to alumni when communicating with parents of applicants about the admissions process. Further, he said that legacy status is an important factor in calculating yield, the percentage of admitted applicants who enroll. Legacy applicants who are admitted enroll at a higher rate than do other applicants. So it's important for enrollment planners to know whether those in the applicant pool are legacies, he said. All students are considered in the same pool for admission to the incoming class regardless of citizenship status. While being undocumented or DACA may present challenges for students wishing to travel or work on campus, immigration status does not impact our reading of an application.
The University's generous need-based financial aid program applies equally to all applicants. If admitted, undocumented students can be confident that their full financial need, as determined by the Undergraduate Financial Aid Office, will be met. We encourage undocumented students to consult with the Office of Admission and Undergraduate Financial Aid Office if they have any questions about our process. College and university legacies refers to students whose parents attended universities or colleges. The status of grandparents or siblings in legacy surveys varies from school to school. Historically, Legacy can be understood as preferential treatment from admissions offices.
There is, and long has been, opposition to legacy admissions policies from certain quarters. It's unfortunate, but a student's test scores, academic records, and other academic achievements closely correlate with the socioeconomic status of that student. The highest hurdle for disadvantaged students in gaining admission to elite institutions is their relatively weak academic qualifications compared to those of, say, the children of Stanford or Yale alumni. Because they're more affluent and have greater advantages, the latter tend to have better academic qualifications than the former, so they're more competitive as applicants. The problem, and it is certainly a serious one, is more a factor of the socioeconomic imbalances in our society than it is a matter of the perpetuation of legacy privileges by colleges.
For those of you not familiar with the practice, "legacy admissions" means preferring the children of alumni in the admissions process. For the money, mostly, because if you make your alumni happy by admitting their kids, they might be more likely to give you money. Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, former President of GWU, made this case in support of legacy admissions, along with citing certain fringe benefits like "bridging" the generations by forming a sort of intergenerational club. Princeton admits students without regard to citizenship status and meets 100% of demonstrated need each year a student is enrolled at Princeton. Undocumented students, including students who have received deferred action under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals process, should apply for financial aid by completing the Princeton Financial Aid Application.
Princeton is one of only a handful schools nationwide that do not limit the financial aid available, regardless of citizenship status. Admission is offered to students regardless of their ability to pay, and the full need of every admitted undocumented student is met just as it is for U.S. citizens and permanent residents. While undocumented students are ineligible for federal financial aid, students can still receive aid from Princeton. Legacy connections are most beneficial to a student when they apply for Early Decision . In general, over 40% of legacy students who apply during early decision are accepted." This is a remarkably high rate for legacy admissions at an institution that accepted only 9% of total applicants this year. Being a legacy doesn't assure a student of admission, but it helps.
Does Sibling Legacy Help It also helps that students with legacy status usually have excellent academic qualifications. One Ivy League admissions officer told us that he doesn't need to dip down in the applicant pool for legacy students with less-than-preferred academic profiles. In fact, most legacy profiles were on par with or better than the general run of applicants. Due to the intensity of competition, however, he said that his school accepts only about one-third of the legacies who apply. In college admissions, a "legacy" student is defined as someone whose parents attended and/or graduated from the institution to which the student is applying.
In some cases legacy status can also apply to other relatives who are currently or previously attended the institution, including siblings and grandparents. Exemplary students are selected to receive University merit scholarships on the basis of outstanding academic achievement, extracurricular achievement, demonstrated leadership, and commitment to their communities. Merit awards are determined by committee on the basis of the application for admission without consideration of financial need. These awards range by amount from $5,000-$10,000 and can be awarded for four years of undergraduate study or as funding for summer opportunities.
We also offer scholarships for first-generation college students, the children of police and firefighters, and the children of Chicago Public Schools educators. Each student admitted to the College will be automatically considered for merit scholarships; applicants do not need to fill out an additional application, with the exception of the Police and Fire Scholarship. Academic and other advising resources are integrated into Princeton's residential framework. Students are assigned a faculty academic adviser before arriving on campus in the fall of their first year, and each residential college has faculty fellows who take part in various components of residential college life.
Each residential college also has a network of deans and directors who ensure that our students thrive both academically and personally. Beyond the residential colleges, there are numerous offices on campus that offer advising of all kinds. If you need help with any part of the writing process, our Writing Center will provide a free, one-on-one consultation with one of their trained Writing Fellows. University Health Services provides comprehensive medical, health, and wellness services to our students. The Undergraduate Financial Aid Office will help with any financial aid issues and the McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning helps our students become more powerful, productive and independent learners. This is just a small sampling of all the resources Princeton has to offer.
You might get a small boost from a secondary legacy, which includes siblings, but it ultimately depends on the school's policy. Typically, the further removed the family member is from you, the less of an impact the connection will have in the admissions process. Some colleges, including the University of California system and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, don't consider legacy status at all. Although not a primary factor in admissions decisions, having a parent, step-parent, grandparent, or sibling who attended the University of Michigan is considered during the holistic review process. Legacy status is not a preference in the admissions process but does serve as context - outside of the admissions review - in understanding a ...
So-called "legacy applicants," those who have familial ties to an institution, are still given a measurable edge in the admissions process at many elite U.S. colleges and universities. Some institutions such as Stanford and UNC only take "primary legacy" status into consideration—where one or both of the applicant's parents are alumni. We give all legacy applicants at least one additional review in this process. It's never easy to turn away the children of Dartmouth alumni."
These tests can provide valuable information about a student which we and other colleges will consider alongside the other elements in a student's application. We encourage students to take standardized tests, like the SAT and ACT, and to share your scores with us if you think that they are reflective of your ability and potential. Given that many of our peers do require testing, we anticipate that the vast majority of students will continue to take tests and may still submit their test scores to UChicago. Some schools only consider parents when assessing legacy status, while others consider grandparents or siblings. A college applicant is said to have legacy status at a college if a member of the applicant's immediate family attends or attended the college. There is no disadvantage whatsoever in the admission process for financial aid applicants.
Princeton has a need-blind admission policy, ensuring equality of opportunity for students who cannot afford the full cost of attendance. This policy covers all admission applicants, including international students. A study of thirty elite colleges showed that in proportion to the number of legacy applicants, college or university admissions are far more likely to reward primary legacy students than they are to encourage a high ranking. In comparison to primary legacies, secondary ones receive a 13 percent boost.
If the college considers legacy status, the admissions committee will also look at the relationship the family member has with the school. In fact, when you list a legacy relationship on your application, it will certainly be sent over to alumni relations, where they will pull a record of your relative's donations. If you list a sibling, admissions officers will likely pull up their academic records to see if they're a strong student. They may also unearth their college application and compare their profile strength to yours. In the admission-review process, "legacy" status is for applicants whose immediate relatives have graduated or are currently enrolled in an academic division of Emory University.
Additional family connections will be tracked by the Office of Undergraduate Admission but do not constitute legacy status. The admission staff and Emory Alumni Association work closely to document legacy applicants through the admission-review process. In the case of the eight Ivy League colleges and universities, an interview is generally offered to applicants, but is not a required part of the admissions process. Students, therefore, should generally not be too concerned if they do not receive an interview offer. At Penn, legacy applicants are individuals whose parents or grandparents attended affiliated institutions through graduate school or other coursework. There are few other universities that define legacy applicants as students who were the children of alumni.
There are varying degrees of recognition for legacy status in schools, with some deeming parents and grandparents irrelevant, while others treat grandparents and siblings equally. The importance of legacy generally stems from preferential treatment accorded admissions offices to relatives of relatives. Aunts, uncles, cousins, and distant relatives do not matter. Below is a list of the top 100 universities and the top 75 liberal arts colleges, as ranked by U.S.
News and World Report, and whether they consider legacy status. If one or both of your parents graduated from a college to which you're applying, this will offer you an admissions boost. But some colleges also consider secondary legacies, such as grandparents and siblings. They're not the only college that takes into account family members who attended the colleges when reviewing applicant profiles. Legacy students, particularly where parent affiliations are concerned, can give students a leg up in the admissions process. Admission to McGill is based on the demonstrated academic merit of the applicant.
Letters of support from alumni, friends, and family do not advantage an application. Some universities and colleges have legacy programs which give special admission consideration to relatives of graduates; McGill does not have a legacy admission program. Yet, the Common App and other applications inquire about siblings, sometimes even asking if a sibling is applying to the same school.
Legacy influences admissions decisions, so the idea that demonstrated interest by more than one member of a family might improve admissions odds. Many people claim that attending college camps while in grades 1-12 will increase your chances of getting into competitive schools. Our research and counselor admissions advice at Empowerly tells us that this claim is blatantly false. These camps do, however, provide content for your essays when applying to these colleges. The Wake Forest application is extremely long and thorough, and asks you many difficult questions that need to be answered creatively.
Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Richard Shaw said legacy applicants have a better chance of being admitted than non-legacy students. And once they get to Yale, Levin said, legacies also tend to get higher grades than non-legacy students with comparable high school GPAs and test scores. So if one or more of your parents graduated from Harvard, and you apply to Harvard, you are considered a legacy applicant. Halle Edwards graduated from Stanford University with honors.
In high school, she earned 99th percentile ACT scores as well as 99th percentile scores on SAT subject tests. She also took nine AP classes, earning a perfect score of 5 on seven AP tests. We review applications holistically, which means there is never a score "cutoff" that would determine the fate of a student's application.
For many applicants, an SAT or ACT score can reflect their academic preparedness in a broader context. Students who feel this describes them are invited to submit these standardized scores. However, some domestic applicants may feel that an SAT or ACT score does not fully reflect their academic preparedness or potential. If this is the case, students may select UChicago's test-optional method of application, and not supply SAT or ACT scores with their application. We welcome any student regardless of testing plan to submit additional material that they feel best highlights their skills, talents, and potential contributions to UChicago. UF has a holistic review process, meaning we aren't just analyzing your academic achievements.
We consider all aspects of our applicants, including their essays and personal involvement. Our middle 50% is also an average, not a threshold (and remember, 25% of accepted students were below this range). It is best to just apply with your best foot forward and see what happens. We try to offer each applicant the opportunity to have a conversation with an alumnus/a volunteer. This is a chance for you to learn more about the Princeton experience, and for us to learn more about you. After you submit your application, a member of the Princeton Alumni Schools Committee in your area will contact you to arrange a convenient meeting time and place.
We include the interviewer's comments in our review of your application. Interviews aren't required as part of the admission process, but we encourage candidates to accept the invitation. Don't be concerned if interviews are not available in your area; we will give your application full consideration without an interview. That might sound unfair to you, and indeed, legacy admissions have come under increased scrutiny in recent years as people both inside and outside of universities have called for the most elite schools to abandon legacy admissions. Nevertheless, with very few exceptions, the vast majority of colleges and universities in the United States still consider legacy status. Legacy refers to a familial connection in the admissions process.
The most common reference applies to the applicant's parent who attended the school. In some cases, however, the term is extended to other close relatives of the applicant, such as grandparents and siblings who attended the institution. I remember there being a question on common app that asked if I had family who went and what degree. Both my sisters went there (older sister had stellar gpa and act scores, younger sister didn't have as strong of an act score but still had great stuff on her application so she got in as well).
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