Being smart and being able to get shit done (that describes the top of most elite school classes) is not a mystery -- it's just really hard to do. The people wh

Being smart and being able to get shit done (that describes the top of most elite school classes) is not a mystery -- it's just really hard to do. The people who are able to do it, however, are pretty much all admitted. The measures for admission for the rest of the people (I call them very smart but unexceptional "clones") is based on things that benefit the university -- athletes, donors, etc. The "secret" for these folks is just to add value to the university. Some folks are born with it (cough Kushner cough), but others earn it by being leaders, athletes, etc. Check out Cal Newport's stuff on these matters. He's about as close as it gets to correct, imho.