Hi! I am super interested in Vanderbilt. It is a phenomenal school, and both of my parents went there. What effect will that have on me? Will it help me a lot, a little, or will it just be a tipping point if admissions is looking at me and another applicant? Thanks!
Legacy will help but you will not be admitted with inferior stats etc. What is your ACT/SAT and GPA?
@TomSrOfBoston I am about to start junior year so I haven’t taken my ACT/SAT yet. My GPA is above a 4.00 but it will be higher this year if I keep my straight As because I am taking APs (we are not allowed to take APs until junior year). What SAT/ACT score do you think could get me in? I am planning on majoring in either health and society or child development.
@whiterosela Do your parents donate a significant amount to the school? If so, you’ll probably get in assuming your test scores are decent.
If your parents donate a lot of money, it would be a significant leg up. If they are just normal alumni, it might give you a small boost, mostly in the ED round.
They address it on their website:
Do parental donations really help with legacy admission? I understand HUGE donations the families who are there who are “famous” and are helping to build library wings, etc. (I really don’t want to mention names here), but I would be ashamed if Vanderbilt put more weight on the family who gave $1,000-5,000 over the family who has a child on financial aid and donates $100 annually to participate.
What you are talking about is called “developmentals”. Children of huge donors and famous people whose chances of being admitted without that parental connection are close to zero.
@AdmitAgain The child of someone who has donated 7-figures will get in automatically, the child of a family who donates 5-figures per year will get a nice boost, and the child of someone who makes a small donation will get little benefit. Vandy needs to keep its donors happy, and wealthier donors are worth more to the school.
I hear you but if Vanderbilt wants to play in the “Ivy” league, it has to be about the students and not donors. Sure, “name” kids - whether a last name is Bush or Gates or Winfrey or Clooney" are always going to get in everywhere, but I know kids with last names on buildings at USC and Stanford who did not get in. That is how those schools stay authentic and elite.
There is much discussion and debate about legacy students at elite U’s. At Ivy schools legacy applicants enjoy an acceptance rate of 3-5 times the overall rate. At Harvard it has been as high as 30% and legacy students fill 15% of the class.
In general it helps separate you from other well qualified students with similar overall profiles but don’t expect it to make up for a weak area on your application. Every year there are upset legacy students (and families) that can’t get in.
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@twicearound thanks for the link which says it all.
For those who have apparently not clicked on the link, at Vandy legacy counts for very little. Could be a tiebreaker or very slight leg up.
My husband & I both went to Vandy & we have many friends who work there. Sadly, legacy will get you no where even if your parents are large contributors (Yup, I know some of those legacies who didn’t get in). Out of all of my alumni friends, I know exactly 1 legacy student who was accepted. Are their others? Sure, but not nearly as many as there used to be. Their AVERAGE ACT score last year was 35- which means about 50-75% of the students got perfect or dang near close to perfect on ACTs. Bottom line, Vandy has severed the connection (& in the process lost a lot of small donors). You’re going to have to be an impressive candidate to even get a proper look.