<p>Back in 1979
Did</a> Obama Really Get Rejected from Swarthmore? :: The Daily Gazette</p>
<p>Wow, that is great info. Very interesting for those of us who have kids trying to get in there ED. UGh, if Obama couldn't get in, how can my kid who doesn't pick up his socks have any chance. =) Oh well, I guess I can just tell him, hey Barack didn't get in either. This just goes to show you, how competetive it is to get in there. But, if he does, well that just says it all. I do know that attending Swarthmore changes one's life.</p>
<p>It is not completely surprising that Barack Obama did not get admitted to Swarthmore in 1979. He was reportedly a B average student in high school who had let his grades slip in his junior and senior years. Although he was a member of a state championship basketball team, he was not a starter. Here's how he was described in a NYTimes article:</p>
<p>"To his high school classmates, Barack Obama was a pleasant if undistinguished student, the guy who seemed happiest on the basketball court, the first to dive into the pumpkin carving at Halloween, the one whose oratorical prowess was largely limited to out-debating classmates over the relative qualities of point guards."</p>
<p>Obama clearly became a more focused student in college and at Harvard Law, but as a 17 year old high school senior applying to college, his high school record as he and others describe it wasn't one that foretold the great things that were to come. So I would not draw any conclusions at all about the chances for current high school seniors thinking about Swarthmore.</p>
<p>But it is a fun story anyway.</p>
<p>It would've been nice to have him as a Swat alum :(!</p>
<p>Apparently only losing presidential candidates are Swat grads (Michael Dukakis '55)</p>
<p>He worked his way up from college.. going to Occidental and then to Columbia as a transfer and then Harvard Law and then Senator and now a President.. so not being a valedictorian in HS is not the end of the world..</p>
<p>probably doing too much coke</p>
<p>YOU: How many high school valedictorians have gone on to become President of the U.S.?</p>
<p>I can't think of one. So every time you see a high school valedictorian, the following thought should flash through your mind: "There's one person who will never become President."</p>
<p>^Use some common sense.. i was just emphasizing the fact that not doing that well in HS and not getting into the ivy leagues/WASP is not the end of the world, and becoming a HS valedictorian means nothing at all.</p>
<p>I knew just what you meant and really liked it. It really got me thinking about Swarthmore, being rejected not being the end of the world and how great it would be if my son got in.</p>
<p>Seeing how there have been ~50 US presidents, I don't think the group makes a large enough sample size to predict anything about them. It should be notable that the next P and VP both have doctorates.</p>