I hate athletic recruits and affirmative action!

<p>the girl didnt get the full ride to stanford...but the talking w/ coaches thing was w/ stanford for this year and she said she was banking on being "hispanic" to get in there, but shes going to the college where she got a full ride to ....which id rather not mention b/c like I said i know a lot of people who go on this site and it would prob. give it away.....its a top school though</p>

<p>hippo,</p>

<p>What the rep didn't tell your junior class was that the minority student that needs to have a lower score ALSO must meet the other criteria. Please look into "school profile" reports. Exp. a hispanic student who's parents earn within the range of the school profile report and the CSS profile and the FAFSA forms all state that they have assets equal to the median school profile will not get any special treatment. This only applies if the hispanic student doesn't meet the criteria. A poor student should not be penalized for not having the same opportunities in high school as a rich or even middle class student. </p>

<p>Did you know that white students in a poor area of Los Angeles get an advantage to a hispanic student that lives where I live (Orange County California, Laguna Beach)? We have multi million dollar homes in my sons school district so why should the poor in LA be penalized because they can't afford to have the state of the art computers and equipment that my son has at school? </p>

<p>It doesn't just work in favor of minorities. It works for whoever needs it.</p>

<p>People need to stop making excuses for things. Accept responsibility</p>

<p>p.s. The school rep that spoke at your school also didn't tell you that it's to a colleges advantage to have high applicantion numbers. The college becomes more selective that way. The number of students that they accept every year stays the same, it's the percentage that changes. The change comes from the number of applications that came in. </p>

<p>The college admission process is a business. Look into things yourself and don't just take someones word for it, like the college rep. She has a motive for her speaking to high schools, it's to get college applications.</p>

<p>CoffeeAddict, you are still young enough to change. Before getting so worked up on issues, make sure you get your facts straight or you'll be endlessly frustrating yourself and others. You can't get on the Stanford posts and claim that HYPS give undeserving minorities placements and full rides, even though they're loaded. Well you can but you'll clearly show your ignorance. Stanford, at least, has a somewhat simple system. Your family makes less than $60,000 and you get a free ride. Black, White Asian Hispanic, whatever, it doesn't matter. You make less than $100,000, According to FAFSA and CSS Profile, and you pay for room and board pretty much. More than $100,000 and its a sliding scale. There are no 'Grants' for minorities or Merit aid either, only need based aid. Also, Stanford has the ability to accept a candidate based on a myriad of characteristics that will make a complete and diverse class in so many more ways than race. Many candidates are denied acceptance while others of the same race, with lower GPAs and SATs are accepted because thier total picture fit better. So clear your mind of these restricting prejudices and use your remaining high school years to make yourself the best candidate.</p>

<p>Jazzy1,</p>

<p>Beautifully said :) I couldn't agree more. My son is going to Harvard and we pay the exact amount you listed above. HYPS are all pretty much the same.</p>

<p>jazzy, i put this on the stanford board b/c i was at first only gonna vent about her and the coaches at stanford, but if you read what i wrote, you would know she didnt get the full ride at stanford....</p>

<p>i agree w/ you about afirmative action and athletic recruiting..i just meant it could be tweaked so people cant cheat it..like this girl..that doesnt mean HYPS has to tweak theirs...</p>

<p>I just had to vent as i said before and anyone can see that this girl got an unfair advantage over actual URMs who should have benefited from affirmative action..thats all</p>

<p>So there is no argument..were on the same page so lets let this thread die..the venting is done...i don't need to grow in my understanding of colleges and their finaid and grants...you mentioned what stanford and HYP do but thats not where she going...and the $ she got was a grant for no reason except that she BSd about being an underprivelleged hispanic...don;t know how they were so dumb to fall for that b/c of all her family's assets..SHE ADMITS IT HERSELF....cheating and lying are wrong..thats all im saying..not AA. thats why im upset w/ the situation....anyone can see that and why would you argue w/ me. Do you condone liars and cheaters who abuse what AA stands for? WERE ON THE SAME PAGE, ill say it again...this thread can die, there is no argument, i know how FA works and agree w/ all of your posts.....</p>

<p>coffeeaddict,</p>

<p>point taken.. you understand about college admission. Now I'm writing to you as a parent who has lived a long time and knows that kids aren't always truthful. I would like for you to know that there must be something in this girls profile that you don't know about. She can't "cheat" the system. Maybe the school just wanted to give her $ to go to their school (for whatever reason), but she didn't cheat them out of $. ALL colleges have access to CSS Profile and FAFSA. If she's going around stating that she cheated the system, then I think she's hiding something. </p>

<p>You sound like a great person with a lot on the ball to be researching on CC about colleges etc. Don't worry about kids who will talk out of their *&^#%. </p>

<p>Best of luck :)</p>

<p>I don't deny that sometimes it may be frustrating to look across the aisle and see someone with a similar background as you getting an advantage because of something you couldn't control. </p>

<p>But doesn't this always happen? In all walks of life? If it was really hard work who carried all of us to the top, there would be an awful lot of people at the top? Here w/e is happening, it's being done for reasons that are semi-justifiable - diversity, bridging gaps...</p>

<p>There are parts of this system that don't work. There are ways to exploit it and to trust the maturity of a 17 year old prestige hungry kid not to would be the most grievous of fallacies, HOWEVER there are parts that do work and in some respects many purposes are accomplished by doing this.</p>

<p>Secondly, it is significantly harder to get into school as a recruited athlete. For the major sports! and the major sports alone, I think this is very very justifiable because those spots wouldn't go to academics if those athletic departments didn't exist. Also, they create a lot of revenues for their respective schools, revenue that often goes to academic programs. Schools use athletes. Plain and simple. If it's unfair, I would argue more the other way.</p>

<p>You know, the world is unfair in many ways great and small. Many people suspect that the Ivies are not entirely honest about not giving athletic scholarships, based in part on anecdotes heard over the years. Ever wonder what tuition the star quarterbacks or basketball players pay at those schools? You'll never find out, but I bet it isn't much if anything and that it has nothing to do with their family finances. Those of us who have been around a while have also seen the pendulum swing back and forth on affirmative action, race, ethnicity, and supposed disadvantage of various kinds. The Economist magazine, for example, claimed that the Ivies actively discriminate against Asians, and that the UCs now serve as a haven for those harmed by that. Is it true? There's almost certainly something to it, because some ethnic group has to lose out when preferences are given to others. </p>

<p>So what are you personally going to do about this? The answer is absolutely nothing. Race and class are political forces in American society, which affect all our institutions including colleges. There is no set of admission standards that will satisfy everyone in this regard, and some will have grievances as a result. Thankfully, the outrages of the past are mostly gone now and many people are more sensitive to one another's perspectives, which is a good thing. Colleges also embrace sports, which is actually Stanford's strongest suit. Stanford ranks higher in college athletics than in any academic discipline, and it intends to stay there. </p>

<p>Let go of anger, and focus on the positive side of what you can achieve for yourself. The fact that some people get into top schools for such reasons is not going to stand in the way of your own accomplishments, and you can't stop foolish people from going overboard or being politically correct to excess. There is a good school out there for you if you can merit it. Be careful also of letting yourself judge individuals based on such feelings, as they will often surprise and possibly embarrass you. That guy or girl you thought was around for the wrong reasons will turn out to have abilities you will have to respect. </p>

<ul>
<li>A Stanford grad from decades ago</li>
</ul>

<p>Thanks everyone, I feel better now about everything...and the girl is not surprisingly a spoiled person who likes to brag a lot so its quite possible she's hiding something... and I never even thought about it but maybe her dad does donate $ to the school.... oh well, I guess I'll never know for sure.</p>

<p>STANFORD HAS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION? does it apply to minority asians?</p>

<p>^^ I know you're not joking but I can hope can't I?</p>

<p>The athlete part i disagree on, but AA sucks.</p>

<p>@ OP You are so ignorant. Do you know how much training goes into being a top athlete and how much it tires you out? Some people may be born athletic gods, just as some might be born prodigies. The acceptance of such athletes not only show the school's open-mind towards diversity; it shows that they know that not all in life is about athletics. After all, major athletes make way more money than bookworms. About affirmative action, I think only the poor should benefit.</p>

<p>First of all, I can definitely see why a lot of whites/Asians get irritated with AA but, as others have said, if you don't like Stanford's (and in some ways America's) dedication to diversity, don't come here. Go to Stanford's website or look at its viewbook, they have about 5 videos on "Stanford's diversity" and stats about how diverse the student body is, so it's obvious that the adcom wants people who can bring different perspectives to the school.
But I think that's where you are wrong, coffee. Your friend who got in and is Hispanic probably does not deserve to get in because she made no effort to connect with her heritage. If she does not even speak Spanish, that shows little interest in who she (and her family) is. I am a Native American and my CC told me that colleges will be interested in me because of my particular ties and efforts to stay in touch with my background. Schools (and especially Stanford) want people who are not only URMs, but also involved in making a difference in their communities, so I feel like your friend is not a good example of why someone from a Hispanic community should get in and that does irritate me as well.
Good luck though, if you're a senior this year!</p>

<p>You know what I think is funny about the whole public, American perspective of AA? That it: A) is VERY retrograding for white americans, and B) it is GOOD for Asian Americans.</p>

<p>A) Be a bit thankful for it. Statistically speaking, Asians own your butts. If it weren't for AA, many, MANY Asian Americans who have much better test scores, transcript loads, and extracurriculars will take your spot at ANY institution. There's just too many of us. Granted, your places are being taken sometimes by African Americans and Hispanics who may or may not have the same caliber of an application as you do, but at least you still are around 40-45% due to AA, and not any lower.</p>

<p>B) Yeah. Whatever. AA screws me over, cause I'm a 3.81 UW Asian that is mediocre to the core, lives in the whitest frickin town in the US of A, and is still expected nothing less than an Ivy-reputation school. Just doesn't work.</p>

<p>I know I went a little overboard in my tirade in the original post. I don't think colleges should stop AA or athletic recruitment; I was just annoyed by the 2 circumstances at my school which seem unfair compared to the majority of the cases who deserve AA and athletic recruitment...i forgot i even had this thread, lol. I still don't know if that girl is going to Stanford or not...I'll have to find out. I never see her anymore...I just don't like when people try to play the system-if they didn't, nobody would have any problems w/ AA or athletic recruitment.</p>

<p>As an athlete myself (but NOWHERE near the skill level of Stanford athletes), I have to say that athletic recruits work tremendously hard to excel at their sport. I'm mediocre compared to these people yet I used to train 20 hours a week on top of school requirements. I don't even want to know how these people manage to do it. </p>

<p>Affirmative action is a different story. I'm a URM myself but I think it's wholly unfair.</p>

<p>@CoffeeAddict, why are you so freaking obsessed with college. You do know that if she was lazy, chances are she will not succeed. I know plenty of successful people that didn’t even attend college. Stop obsessing about AA and go study to beat everybody and earn your spot in the Ivies so you don’t need to worry about it. And about the girl recieving full scholarship to Stanford while being super rich, that is compeletely false because Stanford only pays full scholarship if he/she makes under 60,000.</p>

<p>Let me guess, you also have had some form of tutoring in your life? Well, asians have kinda brought it upon themselves in terms of difficulty in getting into colleges. They set up a bunch of SAT prep centers, when the SAT is not even supposed to be studied for. In other communities, this is very uncommon and can only be seen with the asian communities. Many asians think that the only way to success is through a good university, when this is definitely not the case. there are other ways to become successful. Any college education will get you a stable life. Life is not about money anyways.</p>

<p>futurexreject, I couldnt agree more and i’ll go one step further. I dont understand why people are so obsessed with “HYP” and ivy leagues and what not. Its a promised land that doesnt deliever. You get virtually the same education no matter where you go and it all comes down to what you do with your skills. The only reason why you see HYP grads being successful is because they are talented, motivated, and hardworking,which got them into the school in the first place. Put those same students at some random school and they will still end up successful.</p>

<p>Also, just to put in my 2cents, i dont think theres anything wrong with athletic recruitment. Every student sells there talents to the school, whether its academic, musical, or athletic. And AA should help low income students regardless of race. that should not come into play.</p>