Ability to pay was one of the questions they asked about in the NACAC survey. The surveyed colleges reported the following, making ability to pay the least influential of the 20 surveyed criteria. It’s certainly possible that the colleges were not being truthful, although the names of the colleges are not published, reducing the risk of negative repercussions for unpopular responses.
Ability to Pay
No Influence – 81%
Limited Influence – 14%
Moderate Influence – 4%
Considerable Influence – 1%
If ordered from most to least average influence, the survey order would be similar to the following:
Most to Least Reported Average Influence: NACAC Survey
- Grades
- Strength of Curriculum
- SAT/ACT Scores
- Essays
- LORs
- ECs
- Demonstrated Interest
- Class Rank
- Work
- First Gen
- AP/IB Test Scores
- High School Attended
- State of Residence
- Interview
- Race/Ethnicity
- Legacy
- Gender
- State Graduation Exam Scores
- SAT II Scores
- Ability to Pay
A comparison to UCB’s CDS survey. They both agreed that HS GPA, HS course rigor and standardized tests were the 3 most influential factors by far, in that order. They also both agreed that the next 2 most influential were essays and LORs. Among the top 8, the only one with a large difference appears to be demonstrated interest. NACAC had it above rank and well above interview. CDS had it below both rank and interview. There are many possible reasons for this difference, including things like the wording of the question and whether it includes applying ED, and different sampled colleges.
Most to Least Reported Average Influence: CDS Survey
- HS GPA
- HS Course Rigor
- Standardized Tests
- LORs
- Essays
- Class Rank
- Character / Personal
- ECs
- Talent
- Special Talent
- Interview
- Level of Interest
- Volunteer Work
- Work
- Legacy
- First Gen
- Religion
- Geographic Residence
- Race