<p>Has anyone experienced anything like this? Do schools still do that if you donate money?
If so, how much money does it really take?
I heard about a kid the chem class before my period...he's a B student...1590 SAT...going to Yale next year.
Is it possible he got in beacause of other reasons?
Just curious..
Thanks!</p>
<p>It could have been a whole bunch of other things.</p>
<p>But yes, massive donations do = guarantee in. For example if you donate enough to get an actual building named after you? You can be pretty sure your children will not be rejected–especially if you’re nice to them up till the time when your child applies =P</p>
<p>He could have gotten in, also, because a relative teaches there, he has insane extra curriculars and volunteering, performs well in other classes, or wrote just insanely phenomenal college essays (perhaps a combination of the above?)</p>
<p>Hmmm…thats interesting.
I honestly thought that buying your way in was just like an urban legend…</p>
<p>It’s very real and colleges need the money more now than in recent history. As personal wealth grew amazingly in the past 3 decades in the US, so did the number of ‘development’ (big donor) admits at top colleges. This will now slow considerably with personal fortunes having taken a big hit.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>More regular donations, not like hundreds of thousands and up, will only boost your chances. Nothing beyond that–but it can boost you quite a lot.</p>
<p>Consider also the benefit to the colleges and other students; the more money they take in, the more need aid they can give out, and the more improvements they can make to campus facilities that benefit all students.</p>
<p>if i were a top institution i would take in an “average” or “below-average” student if that meant some billionaire paying for a brand new building to be built, instead of that money coming out of my own pockets. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) money can buy almost anything in this world.</p>
<p>I am skeptical that a student could buy his way in with a donation of anything short of a few million dollars.<br>
I suppose it depends on the university in question, but for the super-hard-to-get-into sorts, like HYPS et al, the donation would have to be huge. You know, buy them a friggin building and your kid will get in.</p>
<p>^^^^^^^^^^^^^
And I wouldn’t know. But 1 million could get four academic stars (one per year) to take a one year sabbatical and come to a top school where they could impact perhaps 8 graduating classes (or more) with lectures, discussions and classes. What would you do? </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Heck, I would accept the village idiot to get something that would benefit future generations of students.</p>
<p>Schools are looking for a chunk of money and the promise of more. $1MM is the amount I’ve seen be a successful start. And even less has worked, Ralph Lauren dangled money in front of Duke, his kid got accepted and then all he gave was $500K.</p>
<p>This is just the flip side of merit aid, so I don’t see why it should be controversial.</p>
<p>This is where the aid dollars come from, every school should take a significant number IMO.</p>
<p>I know someone whose family donated around 1.5 million dollars to an ivy so that she would get in. It worked.</p>
<p>We had these “development” kids when I went to Penn. Heah, someone has to get C’s.</p>
<p>Yeah, I know a kid whose father arranged at the last minute for him to go to Yale. I think donated in the 2-3 mil range. Nobody even read the kid’s application; he also had a few drug arrests. It happens.</p>
<p>I have never known anyone who straight out bought his way into a college. Yes, there are development folks whose kids have gotten into schools where they have donated a tremendous amounts of money, but it is not one of those direct bribe things.</p>
<p>I know a number of very well to do folks who do support colleges generously to the point that there are buildings, funds, scholarships named after them. Their kids did not even apply to those schools when they were not in the running. </p>
<p>It makes sense that development and celebrity admits are handled differently, but I just can’t see someone sending a million dollar check in exchange for his kid getting into a school. It works a bit more discreetly than that. </p>
<p>I saw development admits at my sons’ high school, and those patrons were long time supporters of the school, and there was no quid pro quo arrangement. I’ve also seen such kids turned down for admissions when the school truly felt they were not the best place for the student.</p>
<p>So yes, it does help to have parents making huge donations to a school. However, to call up a school and ask to buy your way in is likely to get you the boot from the more selective schools.</p>
<p>$$$ buys admission, but does it also buy graduation? Does anyone know for sure?</p>
<p>About 12 years ago, my son applied to a top 20 school. We knew well someone who had been on the board of trustees there, who told us if we wanted, there was a protocol for automatic acceptance that included a donation. We really weren’t interested; I thought that whole concept was disgusting. I don’t think at the time it was a huge amount of money - <$100K. But that was 12 years ago. He was rejected, went elsewhere, and was as happy as could be. I just don’t believe in playing with fate. But apparently others do, and it happens.</p>
<p>A couple of years ago I spoke to a friend who works admissions at a top university about this. She said that it definitely happens and even told me the price; I think it was about $100,000 or $150,000 for undergrad admission.</p>
<p>Girl from my grade - 84.6 average, 1900 SATs going to Yale.</p>
<p>Another guy in my grade - really low GPA, decent SATs, guarenteed transfer to Cornell for sophomore year.</p>
<p>It happens.</p>