<p>Legacy status does guarantee an additional read of your application, but you still need competitive stats. I know several legacy students, one with a 32 ACT, who were waitlisted. Make sure your application and essays as strong as they can be!</p>
<p>momdoc, unless something has changed in the last 2 years, legacy candidates do get an additional read from the director of admission. When my son applied in 2008 it was Dan Saracino who personally sent a letter to my husband (graduate of ND) telling him that he had received my son’s application and telling him the process for how admissions handles legacy applicants. One of the perks at the time was that the Director reviews and reads all legacy applications. I thought that was still true and will find out this fall when another child applies.</p>
<p>I agree, Irishmary, that you do get the additional read by the director, but that doesn’t help if your stats aren’t high enough. I’m an alum and my daughter, unfortunately, didn’t make the cut; neither did another family member with a 32 whose father is an alum. Legacy gives you a slight boost, I’m sure, but not as great as many people think/hope.</p>
<p>For highly selective schools, I wonder how much legacy really helps a student. That the accept rate for legacies is higher than the rest of the applicant pool means nothing unless the average stats for the legacies is lower than for the pool overall. I would expect, and studies bear me out, that legacy kids from selective schools tend to be a high powered group. There are probably some legacy/development kids that would skew the numbers down somewhat in terms of acceptance, but if the figures are close, you know that legacy does not amount to a whole lot.</p>
<p>My son’s friend is a double ND legacy, and was accepted with sub par grades, but his parents were also heavy duty legacies in terms of being in touch with the school. There are legacies and there are legacies. Up until a few years ago, I doubt that my DH and my double legacy standing would help our kids much in terms of admissions. Now a class mate heads up admissions. Yes, adcoms are human and if you introduce the kid, they get to know the kid over time, it will help and the legacy card can be used so it isn’t a personal favor. But a sub par app from someone who has just checked off the legacy box but the parents are not at all active with the school anymore, is not going to be viewed the same way. Even with the personal connection, for some highly selective school, it’s going to be tough to be accepted.</p>
<p>This legacy thing is truly bewildering. I’ve heard many stories about well-qualified children of generous alumni being rejected, but the three of my children who applied all got in. The first two decided to go elsewhere, so by the time the third one applied I figured that a rejection was in the offing. I’m an alumnus but hardly a generous donor (I do give a small amount every year), and I did receive the above-mentioned letter explaining the admissions office’s treatment of legacy applications. This third child’s SAT scores weren’t as high as those of the first two (they were in ND’s range but not stellar), but I’d say that her essay was particularly well written, and I can’t help but think that this was the deciding factor. The admissions officers are judging so many applicants with adequate objective stats that this more subjective part of the picture is perhaps ultimately the most crucial. By the way, I often see comments here stressing the importance of frequent communication with one’s admissions rep. My children had no idea who their reps were; they just sent in their applications and waited. I therefore wonder whether overly zealous interest might at times be counter-productive.</p>
<p>I feel like the only true way to get down to the bottom of how much legacy helps is by looking at the actual reasons WHY ND would or would not accept a legacy. For example, I know of a current student at ND that was accepted EA w/ a 29, 1310, and an average GPA. His essays were below average and EC’s were decent. The only real thing going for him was legacy. BUT not only did he have legacy, but he was very wealthy and his father was a big contributor to the university.
Clearly, at least imo, he was admitted because his family was a huge monetary supporter of ND. Think about it, why would they care to admit a legacy applicant whose parent(s) are merely graduates? If they don’t create a financial benefit by admitting the kid, on the assumption that w/o admittance the contributions would go away, why would legacy be a factor? ND is clearly trying to avoid becoming a stale, old money sort of school, instead opting for the best and brightest. Sure legacy helps continue the “ND tradition” and possibly the ad reps will reasonably assume that the legacy will be a full tuition paying member, but my belief is that legacy is only a factor if it is financially beneficial to the university. Otherwise, a more competitive applicant will only raise the university’s profile, thus attracting better applicants.
Lastly, as one member already noted, legacy students are generally in a much more in-tune to the demands of Notre Dame. On average, I am willing to bet that they are more competitive applicants in the first place because of their genetic intelligence as well as their likely supportive enviornment.</p>
<p>Legacy students are preferentially treated because of the familial emphasis of the university, nothing more.</p>
<p>This year, Notre Dame plans to admit about 50% of their legacy applicants. </p>
<p>I think that pretty much sums it up. A lot of value is put on legacy.</p>
<p>Does anyone know if being a varsity football legacy will give me even more of a boost. Im a girl so no football, but is that even better than a normal legacy? or?</p>
<p>ND treats legacy apps very well. Last spring, an ND legacy from my son’s school was rejected or waitlisted at Georgetown, Boston College and Villanova but was accepted regular decision at ND. The boy’s GPA was in the ND range but his SAT scores were 150 below the ND average (1460). The legacy student was not a varsity athlete either. I think he said his father & uncle were both ND grads.</p>
<p>Wow, I guess being a legacy helps eh? I’m black and none of my parents went to college…ND is my top school…err my chances look slim anyways…</p>
<p>Awilo13- There are various different “hooks” that admissions counselors look for when reviewing applications. One is, as this thread suggests, being a “legacy.” However, another “hook” that admissions counselors look for is first generation college students, such as yourself.
Being a “legacy” applicant for Notre Dame means that the application is read twice - once by the regional admissions rep, who, I assume, makes some sort of recommendations in terms of accept/reject; and a second time by the director of admissions. Notre Dame does set aside a portion of their incoming class for legacies, but while there are always anecdotal stories about legacy kids getting in with subpar stats, the same could be said for student-athletes, “famous” kids, etc. Overall though, a legacy applicant, like everyone else, has to have very high grades in rigorous courses; high standardized test scores; and must have shown involvement and leadership both in school and in the community.
You will be “competing” for a spot against other non-legacy applicants. If you’ve done all that you could to get high marks in classes and on SAT/ACT, to be involved in your HS and community, and to write essays that clearly reflect you and your desire to be at Notre Dame, then you’ve done what you could. After that, it is a lot like winning a lottery. That’s why Notre Dame, and other schools are highly selective - they could fill the freshman class several times over with prospective students who would do quite well at the university. Don’t forget they not only have to fill the class with a certain number of students, but those students must also match the male/female ratio of rooms available on campus (especially important at ND where there are no co-ed dorms), must be selected based upon intended programs of study (you can’t admit a whole class of engineering majors - what would the Philosophy department do?), be geographically and ethnically diverse (can’t have a whole class of Californians and Texans!), and create a balance in the athletic sports, clubs, and activities of the campus.
Good luck to you - and I hope that when April rolls around you have several good choices of colleges from which to choose. Wherever you end up, you will do well if you set yourself up for a positive experience and get involved on campus.</p>
<p>“If you’ve done all that you could to get high marks in classes and on SAT/ACT, to be involved in your HS and community, and to write essays that clearly reflect you and your desire to be at Notre Dame, then you’ve done what you could. After that, it is a lot like winning a lottery.” </p>
<p>I couldn’t have said it better myself hsmom2dncrs, this is exactly what it felt like last year for our daughter (not a legacy, but a member of the class of 2016)</p>
<p>Thank you for your support! I understand exactly what you mean. I’ve been told by my own peers that I’m not good enough for ND or any top 20 school. I guess they see me as that black, catholic, 1st generation, low-income girl…when I’m beyond all that. I’ll just have to prove them wrong.</p>
<p>1410 SAT (770 math, 640 critical reading) also had a 730 writing. Full IB diploma. Top of my class, 3.9 GPA. Legacy (dad went to ND) and brother is current senior. Chances?</p>
<p>Also I’m a junior right now</p>