Omniac Attack!

Hey Everyone!

It appears as though the College Board is making news for spewing nonsense, yet again.  This time around, they are trying to debunk the myth of college admissions being difficult.  While their information is convincing and seemingly backed up numbers, they fail to show their work.  The study is also, and more importantly, contradicted by the experiences of Albuquerque students and their families.  

This is not the College Board's first foray into controversial reports, nor is it the first time we've taken them to task for it.  They seemed to have learned their lesson though about putting obviously contradictory statements.  This latest study certainly does seem to be conclusive evidence that the idea college admissions being a nightmare is overblown.  

A closer look at their numbers and a comparision between those numbers and what we've seen in five years of helping New Mexico students with admissions, points out a few interesting facts and biases.

The study only had three regions from which it sampled: East, West, and Midwest/South.  So basically they polled an equal number of students on the east coast, the west coast, and everything in between.  

On the surface, this could appear to be an insignificant statistic, but when you look at the geographic distribution of some of the most selective colleges in the nation, you see a definiate trend.  61% of all students accepted to Harvard come from the east and west coast; 68% of accepted Yale students come from the coasts; There isn't any comprehensive data on Stanford's students, but considering that 45% of those come from California, it's easy to accept that the trend continues.  

Even Notre Dame admits 43% of their students from the coasts.  So even selective schools located in the midwest and ones who want to admit a greater portion of midwest students still import larger numbers of out-of-region students (who come from both coasts) than do the selective schools located on either coast.

What do all of those numbers mean?  It's not that east and west coast students are any smarter or better prepared for college than their southern or midwest counterparts.  But it does suggest that east and west coast students are putting together better applications.  By focusing on these two groups of students, who historically have had an easier time with admission, the College Board's study has less of an impact to students who don't fall in those categories, such as New Mexico students.

Whether by fluke or by choice, the College Board's sample of students skewed heavily towards the academically successful.  Of all the students surveyed, only 11% of them had a GPA lower than 3.0!*  In addition, the average SAT and ACT score of their sample is roughly in the top 25%*.   So, the College Board is only working with the best and the brightest students, is it any wonder that they got the results that they did?  

If that was not enough, the study itself admits that the majority of students polled had already been accepted to a 4-year university.  So, in addition to asking an overwhelming number of the most prepared students, they also mainly asked students who had already gone through the process successfully.  They might as well have asked Michael Jordan how hard it is to play basketball!

It is generally accepted that the number one correlation with standardized test scores is parents income.  Also, as income goes up, the more opportunity is present for college consulting, test prep tutoring, and other avenues of improving a college application.  It stands to reason that the higher a families income, the greater the likeliehood is that they'll be more prepared for college admissions.

Once again, the College Board has opted to sample a greater portion of familes who are already inclined to be prepared for college admissions.  One-third of all families had a family income of over $75,000, with another quarter who have a family income of over $40,000.*  

Over the course of three different areas, region, academics, and income, the College Board has skewed their sample towards students that are already inclined to do well in the college admissions process.  With this information in mind, their claim that college admissions is easy now seems somewhat ingenious.  

The trouble that this invites is that students and families that we speak with, New Mexico students and families, do have trouble with admissions.  Studies like this confirm to colleges and families that there's nothing wrong with the system and any difficulty that a family has is their fault.  That's simply not true and by attempting to skew the facts so that it appears true, the College Board is doing it's part to ensure that nothing ever changes and that the process never improves.

*All statistics come from Complexity in College Admission: Fact or Urban Myth, pages 64-65.

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