<p>My dad's an associate professor and graduate of this Ivy League, as are both grandfathers and my great grandfather. I was told that I could send the admissions committee an email with this information, and it would be added to my app file. Will this help my chances at getting in, or will it give the admissions officer a bad impression of me? I'm well qualified for the school, but I'm hoping this might give me an edge.</p>
<p>If it's the same Ivy League school to which you're applying. Otherwise it matters little. If it's one and the same, wasn't there a app. spot to put down this legacy info?</p>
<p>I looked, but I didn't see one. There was the spot for my dad's education on the Common App, but nothing in their supplement about family (I'm talking about Harvard). Did I miss something? Considering how many times I read over it, I doubt it, but you never know.</p>
<p>It might be in your interest to make it known. I'm pretty sure Harvard admissions stats show Harvard accepts 35-40% of legacies, which is 4 times their overall admissions rate.</p>
<p>"Will this help my chances at getting in, or will it give the admissions officer a bad impression of me?"
1] yes
2]no</p>
<p>There is a family at my daughter's school where every kid in the family went to Harvard, and the father was a professor at Harvard. What is the probability that every kid from one family getting into Harvard otherwise (it's a family of 4-5 kids). I think your father should pull some strings for you, as long as you are qualified.</p>
<p>How obvious should I be about it? My dad's not the type who pulls strings unfortunately, and he keeps on telling me that if I just send in this information by itself it could backfire on me. That being said, he doesn't know very much about Ivy League admissions, and I'm wondering how much to listen to him. I'm qualified for Harvard (3.8 gpa, 2230 and 800 on a few subject tests), but I know being a fourth generation legacy would give me a major boost. Should I try to find another thing to include in the update so it doesn't sound so snobbish?</p>
<p>bcjslugger, did your father go to Harvard College or a graduate school? Also, I think we may have discussed this during homeroom;)</p>
<p>He went to Harvard Medical School. And yes we did discuss this in homeroom... so much for anonymity :D</p>
<p>I suggest you ask your college counselor to mention it in her recommendation. Also, why not call Harvard and ask them about it? Phrase it in such a way as "I'm wondering if there is an advantage to being a legacy." When they say "all things being equal yes" you can ask how you are supposed to communicate your legacy status. If you call anonymously, you don't have to worry about how it sounds and you'll know the best way to communicate the info. You should definitely, definitely communicate it.</p>