From a parent’s perspective, when I come across a college application “help” I look at it differently than most. I have several criteria I use to judge it’s effectiveness, but I came across a site the other day that made me question something more–is it ethically appropriate? My mind is always open to new ways to ease the complicated college admissions process, so I spent a few days reading about the site (on the site itself) to form my own opinion. I haven’t viewed any biased coverage from the colleges, or the College Board. I just spent some time thinking about whether or not, I, as a parent, would encourage my student to use the service.
According to the website, WeGotIn.net, their concept is simple:
Welcome to WeGotIn.Net where you will find copies of actual, accepted applications to Harvard, Yale, Penn, Cornell, Columbia and Brown. These applications contain the entire response to each question. They contain the college application essay as well as the answers to the often difficult short questions that are asked. They are NOT edited in any way (other than the removal of names, addresses, birth dates and social security numbers). Each of them was given to us in 2010 or 2011 directly by the student who submitted it, was accepted and is now a student at the college.
At first look it seems like a beneficial service. It provides students with “samples” of other college applications (helping them see what is expected of them when they complete their own applications). It targets highly selective colleges that are often on students “dream” list.
But is this ethical, or even fair? Is this another form of cheating? Do students really have to resort to this to get into these Ivy League colleges?
Here’s another more obvious question–with all the other colleges available to choose from, why would students even need to resort to this tactic? If competition is so fierce that you have to look at other accepted student’s applications to obtain admission why would you want to attend?
There are thousands of colleges in the United States, not to mention Canada and overseas that offer admission to students without having to stack the deck by viewing other accepted applications. And here’s another question: what are you teaching your student if you encourage them to use this service? It is so much more than a tool; it’s like cheating on a test. It’s like paying to see other tests in a class instead of studying for yourself.
What are we teaching our students if they use this service?
- Take shortcuts and you’ll be successful.
- If your own work isn’t good enough, use someone else’s work instead.
- Achieving success sometimes means that you have to use any method possible to get it.
- It’s not cheating if it gives you added insight into something you can’t do for yourself.
In an effort to defer the criticism they have received, WeGotIn.net is giving all their profits to the scholarship funds of the Ivy League colleges. Good for them. They also say their method is more effective than admissions coaching:
…instead of listening to someone else’s opinion, however well informed they may be, of what they think the committee is looking for. There are a lot of opinions as to what makes a good application – the only thing that really matters is what actually results in an acceptance letter.
I especially love that last line: the only thing that really matters is what actually results in an acceptance letter. I disagree. The only thing that really matters is that your student finds the school that “wants” them and that they completed the admissions process with integrity and honesty. Getting accepted to an Ivy League college isn’t the be all and end all of success.
As always, I welcome any comments, discussion or debate about this topic. I would love to hear from other parents and students.
Thank you for the thoughtful analysis. I agree that in the best of all worlds, SAT prep courses, paid college counselors, legacy admissions advantages, radical differences in the quality of our nation’s schools, major advantages to wealthy students and, yes, WeGotIn.Net would not exist. But the fact is that some students do have a huge advantage over others with regard to admissions. They have parents, advisers, friends and others who can help them to put together an application and say things in a way more likely to get them admitted.
I strongly believe we should not just throw up our hands and cede all of the seats in our best colleges to such students. My goal is to help students who are very much like I was when I was 17 and did not have anyone who could help them with the application process. I made it to one of those schools and my goal now is to help more students who, like me, come from modest backgrounds go to them as well. Now, more than ever, going to a great school matters big time and we should try in every way possible to make access to them more fair and equitable.
Howard,
I understand the basis behind your desire to help other students. But my response would be that you did it on your own and other students can as well. I’m all for “helping” students and parents understand the process and provide them with the right tools to help with it. There is a vast array of help online for free and with today’s technology, there are even free videos online to help them with the process. My additional hesitance to recommend your service is that I strongly believe that there is a college for every student and just because it’s an Ivy League college, you can’t guarantee a better education that a small private college or a state university. As I said in my article, they aren’t the “be all and end all” of college success. There are so many other college choices available and when you are able to achieve success on your own (as you did), it teaches a student that hard work and perseverance does indeed pay off.
Hard work and perseverance are admirable qualities indeed. But without the right opportunity (like meaningful employment after graduation), they are of limited value.
For children of privilege, you are right. They have the connections and advantages that make where they go to college less important. But for the rest, lets be honest – a degree from a prestigious college can really help, especially in these economic times.
Again, I, for one, don’t want to live in a society where opportunity goes disproportionally to those who had the good fortune to be born into privilege. Rather, I want to live in one where people have a good shot at earning it.
Having a degree from a prestigious college does not guarantee a job upon graduation. And I do not want to live in a society that encourages students to “cheat” to get into one of those colleges. Most parents would agree with me.
I would agree too.
I do note that although a prestigious degree is no guaranty of a job, it does help.
And I would never encourage or condone cheating. Helping disadvantaged students have some of the benefits that advantaged students enjoy is hardly cheating; it is helping to level the playing field for admissions, the goal of WeGotIn.net.
I guess it’s the definition of cheating that causes us to disagree. If you’re using someone else’s work, to me, it’s cheating. However, I can understand how it would be easy to justify using the work as a “help”. As a parent, it’s black and white to me. And again, students can position themselves to get a job after graduation by more than going to a prestigious college. They can work at internships, network, and start a business while in college. Even students from Harvard and Yale are jobless right now, while students from smaller colleges are working. I spoke with a gentleman who works with a large corporation and avoids Ivy League students when hiring. He said his colleagues do the same. So a case could be made that the degree is not really worth what you pay. Both arguments are valid.