University Of Texas Investigation Exposes Admissions Secrets

Are you being serious? Is there anyone who actually thought it wasn't happening at the University of Texas as well as every other university in existence?

 

Didn't work for W.

 

Similar things at UT Law School.

http://watchdog.org/144169/ut-law-school-hookups/

 

Exactly, that's how things work every where, University or not.

 

Let's be real -- the kid that ends up not getting accepted to UT just because some influential person's kid took his spot probably should have just worked a bit harder in high school to ensure admission.

As an applicant, you have to assume this happens. Same applies for jobs.

 

From what I read, they said that nobody's spot was forfeited because of an insider connection, so all they did was overpopulate the admissions. Now, down the line, it probably has effects on excluding some applicants.

Bill Powers also said if it were forbidden, he wouldn't have done it. I can understand his stance on that issue. He was probably coerced to admit some students for political favor. If it were explicitly forbidden, he could point to the rules and say his hands are tied, but since it wasn't, he bent the rules for politics.

This isn't really something that's appalling, either. It's how the world works, unfortunately. Sometimes, those who are connected have the advantage over their peers.

 

. . . . . the old fashion version of 'Affirmative Action'

So that makes ALL OF THEM unqualified . . . . right?

Rocket River

 

I wonder what bigtexxx's thoughts on this are vs. his thoughts on affirmative action. :grin:

 

I'm in favor of merit-based admissions. Not using silly things like political favors or pigment of skin.

 

Good man.

 

Having connections OR getting into college based on your color is equally bad. Yes, that makes ALL OF THEM unqualified

 

The most interesting part of the article was how they only give two scores for the essay. Either proficient or not proficient. Means you are wasting your time trying write a great essay.

 

Agreed. (but I'm also in favor of equally funded primary and secondary public education institutions). It's silly to pretend that all colleges/universities, even (gasp) Rice, haven't used the legacy system in admissions, or taken donor money into consideration. Amusing to watch others in this thread act like this is some sort of newfangled outrage.

 

A man of the people.

 

There is a reason why many people are told at a young age to build good connections. If you (or your parents) know the right people and pull the right strings, then you will be in good position to get ahead in many aspects of life, including educational opportunities.

Every single university in the country is doing what UT-Austin is doing in admissions. This has been going on for many decades everywhere, and it will continue to happen far into the future. Nepotism is all around us.

This Forbes story gets a yawn from me.

 

Forbes ranked us as the 13th best public school in the country? What kind of BS is that? All credibility lost right there.

 

Seems fair enough, Big-10 and Pac-10/Cali schools have been doing peer-reviewed research and graduate education for at least a century. While the SWC and SEC were deflecting integration mandates and bribing football players, the former group was probably building the tech industry.