If the lottery was binding, then no. Otherwise, yes. I want to give DD choices, and winning this lottery would assure her of having one more option. While I think there are better fits for her out there, ultimately the choice is hers. Hey, if DD isn’t going to pick my first choice, her first choice might as well be Harvard, right?
If Harvard offered a lottery spot w/o academic requirements, would your encourage your kid to apply?
My S had the stats for Harvard and we could afford full pay, but he had zero interest. Why apply to a school you have no interest in?
My older son thought he had no interest until he actually spent a weekend plus on campus for accepted students weekend. That’s when he realized there were actually lots of nerds like him there and not nerds like his parents.
Would my kids know they were only admitted because of the lottery? Honestly, I think that would undermine their self confidence. The generous financial aid would certainly be tempting, but it would be the wrong place for both of them. D1 is studying a program which is not offered at Harvard. D2 is in a direct admit BS/MD program. I doubt very much she would trade that for Harvard.
Thanks for everyone’s responses. Maybe I should have chosen a different “prize” that more people would value, say Stanford full-ride. Is it worth spending hours and hours on essays if the chances are so low?
I actually consider the essay-writing part of the process to be extremely valuable. Even if it doesn’t pan out in acceptances, I do not think it’s wasted time. Learning to be a fabulous communicator is a great skill, even (especially?) for STEM majors. And most college essays require a level of self-reflection that isn’t typically called for, so is especially interesting and worthwhile. (I admit, I am not a fan of the “Why X College?” Essays, but do love most other prompts). Most kids also work to polish their essays, writing multiple drafts, and learn the value of letting their writing percolate over time and make changes so that the final version is a huge improvement over rough drafts. The students can learn a lot about themselves and about the writing process.
When kids do endless hours prepping for standardized tests, or participate in EC activities they are not fond of, just for something to include in apps, or other time-consuming things along those lines, I consider that a waste.
But I say IF you are interested in those schools, “go for it!” You may not get that “prize” of Harvard or Stanford acceptance, but the hours you invest in the essays are not wasted.
I posed this question to my kids and their friends. Apparently, I was wrong. Most said they were not interested in Harvard so would not want the lottery spot. However, all said they would not mind knowing that they were only accepted through lottery, it wouldn’t hurt their self-confidence and they would take the spot if it were a college they wanted in the first place.
If they were capable of doing the work and enjoyed that environment…100%. Otherwise , no.
No, but if Stanford did I sure would…
I would want it for my D21 but only if it included cost of attendance and it was someplace she wanted to go. I would rather a lottery for cost of attendance to a college of her choice. We’re probably not going to qualify for FA at many schools because it would depend on a NCP waiver.
I guess I should just play the regular lottery since it would accomplish the same thing 