4 ms·

First Stuy, then UofC goes test-optional, and now CMU eliminating demonstrated interest in their application process...the race to mediocrity.

tylerhou 8y ago
Why does CMU admit more mediocre candidates if they eliminate demonstrated interest? Visiting campus doesn't really say anything about how talented/hard working a candidate is -- all it does is signal that they have enough money and time to visit.
- guard0g 8y ago
  Demonstrated interest isn't about visiting campus - it's about interviews, essays, standardized tests, maker portfolios, etc...
- akhilcacharya 8y ago
  I agree. I did a single college tour and that was a school that doesn't take demonstrated interest into account (that I also had no chance to get into). I had only briefly visited the others because they were basically in my backyard.
- desu_ 8y ago
  You are right that visiting the campus is a weak signal. However, the decision came with a plethora of other decisions, some probably fair, some more reminiscent of the Asians-have-bad-personalities trick à la Harvard. We're eliminating demonstrated interest as a consideration in our admission paradigm. We'll no longer encourage supplementary submission of materials, including resumes, research abstracts, writing samples, multimedia demonstrations of talents, and maker portfolios. https://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/eliminating-demonstrated-interest https://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/eliminating-demon...
mrchicity 8y ago
It was wrong decades ago when the Ivy League had a soft cap on the number of Jewish students admitted, and it's wrong now when schools effectively do the same for Asians. They can nudge-nudge-wink-wink "Holistic approach" all they like, but when the data show an Asian student needs 120 more SAT points to get in, it's hard to see anything other than racial bias or de facto quotas. I don't say this out of self-interest, I'm not Asian. If anything, these quotas help people from my background. I don't care. They are deeply unfair and antithetical to the American values of equal opportunity, fair competition, and not judging people on their race, gender, or creed. And the students being pushed out by these rules are not rich or privileged. The rich and privileged kids in New York are in private schools that cost more than a luxury car for a year's tuition. Many are children of first generation immigrants.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]

tylerhou 8y ago

Why does CMU admit more mediocre candidates if they eliminate demonstrated interest? Visiting campus doesn't really say anything about how talented/hard working a candidate is -- all it does is signal that they have enough money and time to visit.

guard0g 8y ago
Demonstrated interest isn't about visiting campus - it's about interviews, essays, standardized tests, maker portfolios, etc...
akhilcacharya 8y ago
I agree. I did a single college tour and that was a school that doesn't take demonstrated interest into account (that I also had no chance to get into). I had only briefly visited the others because they were basically in my backyard.
desu_ 8y ago
You are right that visiting the campus is a weak signal. However, the decision came with a plethora of other decisions, some probably fair, some more reminiscent of the Asians-have-bad-personalities trick à la Harvard. We're eliminating demonstrated interest as a consideration in our admission paradigm. We'll no longer encourage supplementary submission of materials, including resumes, research abstracts, writing samples, multimedia demonstrations of talents, and maker portfolios. https://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/eliminating-demonstrated-interest https://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/eliminating-demon...

mrchicity 8y ago

It was wrong decades ago when the Ivy League had a soft cap on the number of Jewish students admitted, and it's wrong now when schools effectively do the same for Asians. They can nudge-nudge-wink-wink "Holistic approach" all they like, but when the data show an Asian student needs 120 more SAT points to get in, it's hard to see anything other than racial bias or de facto quotas. I don't say this out of self-interest, I'm not Asian. If anything, these quotas help people from my background. I don't care. They are deeply unfair and antithetical to the American values of equal opportunity, fair competition, and not judging people on their race, gender, or creed. And the students being pushed out by these rules are not rich or privileged. The rich and privileged kids in New York are in private schools that cost more than a luxury car for a year's tuition. Many are children of first generation immigrants.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]