<p>Since many public schools are cash-strapped, I would expect public schools to admit more development cases than in the past. They would be more than ordinary full-freighters, whether in-state or out-of-state (because, in fact, their families would be able to donate large amounts of money), even if most of them clearly have favored full-freighters over students that required financial aid, if the differences between the full-freighters and the ones with demonstrated need were otherwise not significant.</p>
<p>But has there actually been development cases at public colleges? I suspect UCLA, Berkeley, UWA, UVA, UMI and perhaps UIUC, UWI as well as W&M to have some developmental admits...</p>
<p>Catria…what exactly do you want to know? ALL colleges are delighted when they have a potential development admit (not a “case”). This is not unique to private universities.</p>
<p>They may very well not be unique to privates, but have their prevalence at publics increased lately? Which ones favor development admits most?</p>
<p>I know that CSUs, Iowa state schools and Missouri state schools do little favor at the undergraduate level to development admits (if only because they are non-holistic)…</p>
<p>Understandably, different schools have different thresholds to qualify for developmental status, but which publics are more popular among the audience wealthy enough to qualify for developmental status?</p>
<p>Catria…again I ask…what do you really want to know here? There are developmental admits at many, many schools, both public and private. I honestly do NOT think your question makes ANY sense. None.</p>
<p>With one major public university, I am told there are some students admitted at the encouragement of the development office. However, you have to be a really major donor at that U. to get admissions preference - not just someone who donated a couple hundred thousand.</p>
<p>During the 1970s, Duke used development admits on a large scale to build up their endowment. Once it became known that admission could be bought, many parents of high school kids lined up with large donations.</p>
<p>Nationwide, it has been found that alumni donations drop off if an alum’s kid is not admitted.</p>
<p>In other big news, nationwide, it has been found that the sun rises in the east, that apples fall down, not up, when they separate from trees, and that the Pope is, indeed, Catholic.</p>
<p>At least one major public university has an unusually large waiting list. That wait list is valuable to let people down easy - the parent can feel that their kid was almost admitted, but just barely didn’t make the cut. It is a good way to deal with politicians and alums. If an alum feels their kid was almost admitted, they are more likely to keep giving.</p>
<p>You’re thinking about it backwards. It’s not which colleges favor developmental admits most. It’s which colleges do those who have the money to BE big-time donors want to have their kids admitted to. Which is, of course, personal and idiosyncratic to that family. </p>
<p>You know, the family who donates the new science wing to East Directional State U can be just as proud of that as the family who does the same for Elite U.</p>
<p>Here’s the thing, Catria. The people who are wealthy enough to qualify for developmental status are often very quiet and behind the scenes. They aren’t necessarily “names” that you’ve heard of, or associated with companies that you’ve heard of. And they aren’t necessarily found only in NYC or other urban areas. So how are we going to know what some quiet industrialist prefers for his kids? Or what they prefer?</p>
<p>In general the largest developmental contributors for public universities are alumni of those institutions. The largest donations to public institutions are given for naming rights for buildings and athletic facilities. The next group of contributors are given preferred seating at football games. For highly competitive public institutions admission standards in general are lower for children of alumni and in state residence which do not require developmental contributions.</p>
<p>Yeah, charlieschm. I know many, many families with kids who have been waitlisted at a parent’s alma mater, and I do not know a single one where the alum maintained his or her prior giving level because he or she felt the kid was almost admitted. I can’t imagine it would be different at a major public university.</p>
<p>One case of which I know at third-hand, but from a reliable source, dealt with a family of multi-generational donors, whose cumulative contributions to the university reached eight figures, and who had two professorships and a building named for them. The development office tracked the grandchildren. When one child was a junior in boarding school, there was a quiet meeting with the parents, in which they were told, very very very politely, that it would embarrass everyone if their child applied, and he would ultimately be rejected. That’s the way to maintain a good relationship when the dollars really matter. And even there, I don’t think the parents’ dollars continued to flow as freely.</p>
<p>More pertinent to this thread, I know one very wealthy family where the father has been a significant supporter of the public university from which he received an advanced degree (and specifically the unit where the degree was earned). His third child went to that university as an undergraduate. She was perfectly well qualified, so it didn’t surprise anyone that she was admitted, and I don’t think the father put on any kind of push to make it happen. But he probably didn’t have to do more than show up with her to tour the campus, which he did. The older two children would not have been perfectly qualified, and didn’t apply, and in fact went to very different sorts of colleges. I know that admitting the youngest child has been a very good financial deal for the university; her father has continued his support, and she has joined him with her own significant money.</p>
<p>I think development cases at public colleges are fairly rare, it happens, but not enough for anyone to notice (as compared to some privates). It’s rare enough that it doesn’t really have much impact on anyone who’s not a development case. If the school admits 5,000 freshman, having a dozen development cases doesn’t have much impact on other students applying to the university.</p>
<p>On the other hand, out-of-state admits (paying out of state tuition) do have a significant impact (on admission) at several colleges (UVA, Michigan, etc.).</p>
<p>Similarly, at a private university that has (let’s say) 2000 in the freshman class, having (let’s say) 5 development cases doesn’t have much impact on other students applying either. Well, except for the good that money can do if it goes towards a new dorm, science wing, student center, or scholarships.</p>
<p>"Similarly, at a private university that has (let’s say) 2000 in the freshman class, having (let’s say) 5 development cases doesn’t have much impact on other students applying either. " </p>
<p>It’s hard to judge this from the outside. I think development may overlap with alumni and there are universities and small lacs where there are lots of rich alumni’s kids and lots of children of rich/ powerful people. In other words, looking at it from the outside, there are quite a few admits who could have been development cases and other parents and students would only know if told. It may also be that rich kid’s child has had the benefit of top private education, tutors, etc and would have been accepted even if their parents were middle-income. (Fwiw, I know a kid who was accepted to a top lac with low scores/ grades because dad was an important politician but we also remember Maria Shriver saying her d hadn’t been accepted to Boston College so you don’t know unless you know.)</p>
<p>I hope not. UW does ask if parents are alumni but there better not be any shenanigans with less qualified students getting in because of potential money from parents. There are financial gains with more OOS students but there are also legislated instate numbers. Despite less state aid to public U’s in WI now they still have a mandate to educate state residents. Athletes that help garner funds for the U are the development cases. We all know many football, basketball et al players would not be admitted unless they were on a team. This is tolerated because college sports generate a lot of income for schools, even after the ridiculously high coaching salaries.</p>