I agree that this was poor, speculative journalism on the part of Malcom Gladwell.
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So is the gist that poor first gens don’t deserve or care about healthy food? Is that his point?
I believe his point was that Vassar prioritizes financial aid/funding over other priorities, and proof of that is that they have lousy food. And that Bowdoin, with its presumably higher quality food, must prioritize financial aid/finding less because they care more about feeding their rich students expensive food. It’s incredibly simplistic and stupid, especially if they didn’t bother to ask Bowdoin about its financial aid programs.
PS, I have no skin in this game—my kid goes to ucla, which is often ranked #1 for food, and has a ton more kids who qualify for Pell grants than either of these two LACs. But lousy journalism makes me mad, so I’m weighing in 
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Also the podcast is 7 years old at this point so probably no longer particularly relevant (Vassar has renovated their dining hall since then and apparently the food has improved since 2016, for example). But my D22 listened to the podcast as a sophomore in HS - long before she had any specific schools in her sights - and did find it eye-opening in the idea that different schools prioritized different things. I don’t think it affected her college choice - we both needed a lot of aid AND she appreciates good food 
but it did make her think more broadly about how colleges (and families and businesses) prioritize their resources. But I agree it may have been shoddy journalism or unfair to Bowdoin - I actually have no idea - but mainly I think it’s just out of date.
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And even at the time I remember us thinking it was really unfair to bowdoin - that lots of schools were probably just as bad or worse. They must have annoyed mr gladwell somehow 
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Minor digression. I believe Bowdoin’s mascot is a polar bear and Vassar’s is a beer mug.
When thinking about who I would want to bring on a road trip, have as a roommate or enjoy a meal with the answer is clear……Vassar wins.
Otherwise both great schools.
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I didn’t feel like he was trying to be unfair to Bowdoin as much as also highlighting that if a school wants full pay students, it has to create an environment that is attractive to them. It may have to court them with what they expect/want, which in this case is “luxury” food.
I’ve heard many families complain about their kids’ dorms, wondering how, after a lifetime of their own, well-appointed bedroom, they’ll be able to sleep/study/survive in a basic college dorm with shared bathrooms. (Um, my spouse was one of these!) Nicer housing is a draw too. Great gyms, free music lessons, etc…
It is a conundrum for schools-- when all schools cost the same for a full pay family – of how to attract the students who will shell out that money because their financial model is based on that. Vassar (at least when that podcast was made) had said it wasn’t going to play that game but was instead going to trade the lobster dinners for scholarships. (I suspect Bowdoin has a larger endowment but I am too lazy to look it up – and know that if it matters, someone else here will!) Bowdoin could do that too but would have less tuition revenue and potentially less development money as well. They must feel like it’s working for them.
I don’t know if it matters, but Bowdoin has a larger endowment than Vassar … I think it’s almost double. Bowdoin has one of the largest endowments among small college…
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My D23 loved a lot about both Bowdoin and Vassar, but the one that offered her more financial aid was actually the one that also has the excellent food.
She didn’t end up choosing either school, so I have no favorite/bias between them, but I
(1) appreciate Vassar’s choice to make financial aid a priority and still
(2) think Gladwell’s accuracy/completeness was compromised for the narrative he decided on
Bowdoin could probably give even more financial aid by cutting back on the quality of the food, but instead it seems they are able to provide both excellent aid and excellent food, and I think I’m a fan of that (and wish more colleges had the resources for it).
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When PETA took a look at the food at Vassar and Bowdoin, it gave Vassar a grade of B and Bowdoin an F.
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I hear this a lot. It’s crazy and reflects changing norms. For comparison, I grew up in an upper-middle-class household with a nice in-ground pool in my backyard and my own beautiful bedroom with air conditioning. It never would have entered my mind that I’d have the same type of comforts at college. It was college! Living in the dorm was the fun of it! It was expected in the 1970s to have cinderblock walls, hang an Indian-print wall hanging and beads in your doorway. It was expected to eat in a mass dining hall where you stand on line to fill a tray with food. It was the norm. I went to school with lots of upper-middle-class students, and nobody expected the college dorm to be anything other than what it was.
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Cinder blocks and bland steam table food is a little tougher to accept as we are hitting the $20,000 mark for ~two-thirds of a year worth of congregate living and dining. Whether the norms changed due to consumer preference or the colleges upselling is likely a chicken-or-the-egg question.
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Yeah, the Vassar and RISD kids are pretty hip…
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Thanks for this helpful discussion. We visited Vassar this past Feb and my son totally loved the school. He was thrilled by the old dorms and the beautiful campus, and thought everything looked pretty magical. If he is lucky enough to get in (it is a reach school for him) we will certainly consider it very seriously. That said…
My husband and I were less impressed by the experience, mostly due to admissions/tour. We flew out from California to tour colleges, and brought scans of our COVID cards rather than the originals. However, we received notice only a day before the Vassar tour that we needed to provide evidence of a booster as well, which was on the back of my husband’s original card (and thus not on the scan). Despite the fact that we had flown out from CA, and that my husband had a scan of the front of his card, the Vassar admissions staff would not let him take the tour, even though he offered to wear a kn95 mask. We were stunned to be asked for proof of vaccination for an outdoor tour, much less have him barred from participating. It felt very insensitive to the cost and effort our family invested in making it out to tour the school. It also felt excessive even to our very COVID-cautious family. We toured multiple colleges on our trip and this was the only place that checked vaccine cards (much less proof of boosters).
So, admissions should not make a difference, but unfortunately it does sometimes. Our info session was very lackluster. My husband was left on his own to walk around the school and did not come away with a positive impression. Our kid saw something very special at Vassar and I’m sure it’s there, as a big fan of small LACs myself. But it sounds like Vassar should take a look at some of their admissions staff / policies so as not to detract from the great things the school has to offer.
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