I am told I am not ivy League material. The thing is, I am not applying. I am the parent. My wife tells me my hair is too long, and no Ivy League school will accept our son once they see me. Getting in is a package deal, they look at the whole family. Is that true? And if it is, would they be unable to look past the length of my hair? Would that override my Masters degree in science, and anything else that they might use in evaluating me in regards to my son’s application? I do not share the opinion that he must absolutely make it into an Ivy League school, and given the acceptance rates, the probability of it is extremely low. I just don’t want to be set up as the fall guy for a non-existent factor. If someone with inside knowledge tells me it is, I’ll shave it off!
That’s silly…I don’t know when the person evaluating your son’s app would ever even see you.
Your wife is being ridiculous.
Getting into any Ivy or similarly selective school is a long shot for anyone. If your kid doesn’t get in, it won’t be because of your hair. Or his hair for that matter.
Sorry, but your post is making me giggle. I have an idea that your wife just wants you to cut your hair short. That is possibly the most ridiculous thing I have heard in the last two years that I have been obsessively perusing this forum:-)
Your appearance, and for,that matter, the appearance of yiur son, barring an interview perhaps, has less than zero effect on his chances. Not that Brown is Princeton, but a boy in our school got into Brown and his hair is three feet long, no joke. And he interviewed. Your son’s brain is pretty much their number 1 priority.
There are questions about parental education level. This is probably to determine first gen students, and also to see if you are an alum. They will not care about your education.
You are smart to understand the very low chance of getting in. Above all, be sure your son has an appropriate range of colleges to apply to, not just top 25 schools.
This sounds like satire.
^ ^ I agree.
Get a haircut and be at peace.
Yikes! If she is set on remaking you, what the heck is she putting your son through?
Please watch out for your child’s mental health and stress levels, and don’t let her get carried away with pushing your son to become something he’s not to get into the Ivies, especially if it’s not his dream.
Make sure you understand the college search process for yourself (since she’s getting her admissions info from some rumor mill) and make sure your son has both admissions and financial safety schools, even if your wife finds such schools “beneath her.”
Assuming this is real… how would they even know? They don’t take notes in students (or parents) when you visit campus (unless someone does something truly outrageous, like dancing naked in a fountain – general rule would be that unless they call campus security on you, you are pretty anonymous). If your kid gets an interview, let your wife drive him to it if he needs parental transport.
I think your bigger concern is the state of your marriage.
I don’t know if Ivy is his dream, or if it is, the decision was born from his own perceptions without influence. He is a top student academically, and also athletics. I will plead ignorance on my own part for what it takes to get into such an institution. My own application and eventual acceptance was strictly paperwork. No interview, no tour. I do remember the application asking if and where my parents went to college, but that was about it.
If this post is real: your kid isn’t being vetted to marry the princess of Siam. Colleges don’t care about you or your wife and certainly not your appearance.
Evidently I have been doing a good job hiding myself from the AO of ivies.
“Your appearance, and for,that matter, the appearance of yiur son, barring an interview perhaps, has less than zero effect on his chances.”
I don’t think it is true to state that appearance does not impact college opportunities. But I don’t think the parents presentation matters at all.
this post reminded me to this http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/470497-clam-fart-oh-my-god-what-did-i-do-p27.html pretty hilarious.
@lostaccount , which is why I said barring an interview. No one knows what you look like unless you interview. Even buy with three foot long hair probsbly scrubbed up for the occasion. Obviouslty don’t go to,any interview looking like a slob.
I keep thinking of Viggo Mortensen, who looks better with long hair, IMHO. His appearance sure wouldn’t hurt a kid’s chances. Assuming that is not who you are, though. 
Lindagaf, I think it can impact in many different ways-via letters, previous opportunities etc.
There is no way this real lol
Maybe his wife lives in a fantasy world where everyone who goes to the “Ivy League” wears Lacoste shirts, loafers without socks, smokes a pipe, and is named something “the third”.
Or just “Trip.”