“after they have fulfilled their (often openly stated) will to have incoming classes to be, (in one case,) “50% minority,” we see there really isn’t much room for us.”
And don’t forget athletic admissions (20% of class at Harvard).
Once all the groups (legacy, racial, donors, athletic, first gen, international, etc..) have been admitted, there aren’t many space left for just a plain normal smart good kid.
To be clear, “plain normal smart good kids” are fine, but I have one (and another on the way) that the Ivies used to go out of their way to find, and at whom to throw scholarship money.
I am completely eclipsed by my son academically and athletically, but he doesn’t really have a shot at my alma mater, even as a legacy. “Rich trans-generational legacy” is what matters: old money, usually.
Lesser-performing - far lesser-performing - kids get these spots if they have the requisite skin color. That starts with the most prestigious prep schools, and is also true with the Ivies.
White middle class kids aren’t wanted, even when they are outrageously smart, hard-working, talented, have won award after award, etc. It just doesn’t matter.
These schools want kids of a certain color who can simply make it through college. That is the goal.
Ultimately, it is the end of the idea that the “smartest kids” go to these schools. They don’t.