<p>How much would it sway the average applicant with a mediocre chance at acceptance if (s)he "knew someone" who happens to work at and be involved with Harvard?</p>
<p>A friend of mine is convinced that he's going to get accepted with his 2040 SAT, 3.9 and typical EC's simply because he has a connection; I'm applying next year with better stats and no connection, and I wanted to know if this would actually be a deciding factor in his application.</p>
<p>Letters from politicians, celebrities, or people in high powered jobs DO NOT help in the college admissions process (even if they are related to you), as the applicant comes off as privileged. In addition, the content of those letters does not add much to your application, as most of them say something along the lines of “I know the applicant and his family. He’s a really super kid; I can personally vouch for him and you should admit him.”</p>
<p>So, no I don’t think a letter from anyone will sway an Admissions Committee, especially if the applicant has mediocre grades and a 2040 SAT score. William Fitzsimmons has addressed this issue. [Guidance</a> Office: Answers From Harvard’s Dean, Part 3 - NYTimes.com](<a href=“http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/14/harvarddean-part3/]Guidance”>Guidance Office: Answers From Harvard's Dean, Part 3 - The New York Times)</p>
<p>"The value of an additional letter or two depends on how well the person knows you, not the person’s profession or who he or she might be.</p>
<p>One of the best letters we ever received over the years was written by the school’s custodian who supervised the student in the school’s work program under very difficult circumstances, when everyone was tired at the end of the school day. The letter supported the other positive information in the application about how the student always made everyone around him better — and it made up for sparse recommendations from the over-worked teachers and counselors at that school. The strong personal qualities and character noted by the custodian were confirmed by the remarkable difference the student made to others during his college career and the difference he continues to make today."</p>
<p>I didn’t mean writing the letters, I mean actually having something done with the application.</p>
<p>My friend said he was promised that his “application would be seen by the right people.”</p>
<p>Your friend is blowing smoke and/or is straw grasping. Just relax. Odds are 90+% you both get the thin letters – why sweat this annoyance?</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/1435801-personal-connections-favors-help-hurt.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/yale-university/1435801-personal-connections-favors-help-hurt.html</a></p>
<p>Knowing someone who doesn’t work in admissions is highly unlikely to have any influence on an applicant’s eventual admissions decision. (I didn’t get into T26E4’s alma mater, even though I had an uncle who was a professor there.)</p>
<p>Knowing someone who does work in admissions shouldn’t mean much either. I am sure that admissions officers are expected to recuse themselves when they know an applicant.</p>