<p>Hello fellow CCers!</p>
<p>I am a legacy (dad went to the college undergrad) and I was just wondering how much a legacy could help me because even though my grades, scores, and extra curriculars are all on par for Columbia, I don't have a hook. </p>
<p>I've heard that Columbia puts more importance on legacies, is this true? And if so, what is it the equivalent of? Is it as helpful as being a URM?</p>
<p>Thanks!
Jaden</p>
<p>You can’t look at it this way. Admissions officers look at your application in its totalit: your personal statement, your attachment to Columbia, your grades, your standardized test scores, your extracurricular activities and work experiences, and the fact that you’re dad went to the college. It’s not something that they just check off. As far as the comparison to URM status, I’d say nothing comes close to URM status. The reason for this is that African Americans and Hispanics, on average, have much lower standardized test scores than whites and Asians. As a result, their scores are essentially evaluated on a different standard. So an African American applicant with an SAT score of 2000 could be competitive (since they’d be in a very high percentile for their ethnicity), while a white or Asian applicant with a score of 2000 would not be (since they’d be in a much lower percentile). Legacy status doesn’t have that effect; it just makes you a more attractive applicant, since the admissions officer assumes you understand and respect the culture of the school. I’d argue it’s the equivalent of a really good “Why Columbia?” statement.</p>
<p>I guess a good advice is to show interest (through alumni reunions of your father’s, etc: anything to get you on Columbia’s radar), write a good Why statement showing how well you know and deserve Columbia due to your legacy status, and apply Early Decision.</p>
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<p>Care to back this up with something solid? You can’t just “feel” that African-Americans score lower (which could well be true) and hence the slightly-higher-scorer would be much more desirable. In my personal experience, legacy is just as powerful, if not more.</p>
<p>I think the idea that URMs score lower is more of a stigma than truth…</p>
<p>Ive heard the same thing but have yet to see facts on the subject. I guess people equate being a URM with being either impoverished or under privileged in some way? And they assume that Asians are highly intelligent based on stereotype, and any white student considering a school like Columbia must have money and therefore privileges such as tutors or a better highschool education…</p>
<p>I’m a legacy and I was waitlisted, but accepted yesterday. Not sure if it is a major help, but it definietly contributes to your application as a whole</p>
<p>writing a check for $1,234,567 will help your chances greatly. Good luck.</p>
<p>Daughter is a double legacy with 3.95 GPA and 2290 SATs and was waitlisted.</p>
<p>^</p>
<p>There you go.</p>
<p>I don’t know why people always beat around the bush when others ask about Columbia Legacies–</p>
<p>Bottom line, if you apply ED, its a huge hook. If you apply RD, its a little tiny hook. </p>
<p>Maybe this is a cynical view of their motives, but the more wealthy legacies are going to be the people applying ED. It’s much harder for someone in the middle or lower class to sacrifice their ability to shop Financial Aid by applying ED. The advantage to admitting legacies is, in large part, that the legacies tend to be some of the most consistent donors.</p>
<p>I’ve also heard–though I’ve not seen this backed up by actual statistics–but they prefer male legacies, because they tend to donate a little more. It struck me as bull when I heard it, but maybe its true and someone else has heard that.</p>
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<p>But then again, the wealthier ones also have better odds of getting in the other top schools. So why would MORE of them want to be tied down to Columbia?</p>
<p>Legacy doesn’t help as much any more at elite schools, as admissions have gotten more competitive. Unless your grandparent or parent (whoever the alumni is) is an active alumni, legacy only serves to gain you preference over an identical candidate. Being an active alumni means donating large amounts of money to the University/college or still being involved with it by being on alumni boards and alumni committees, such as those that provide alumni interviews. This is what I heard from my friend, who’s cousin is the dean of students at Stanford (I know… ridiculous right?!).</p>
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<p>Because its their favorite school? The point is that the less wealthy can’t afford to lose their ability to shop Financial Aid.</p>