Advantage of Money in the College Admissions Process

Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman are both involved with the scandal.

For many high school students, they start their high school experience with the dream that they will go onto attend the college of their dreams. But, that road is a hard and rocky one. In order to get into the school of their dreams, many students take multiple AP’s, get involved in extracurriculars and sports, all in an attempt to look better in the eyes of the admissions officers in order to get accepted into college.

Recently, a story broke telling how celebrities, CEOs, and other wealthy individuals paid off coaches and proctors for tests, which propelled their children into getting into the college of their dreams. Coaches would be paid to provide fake recruitment for students, while proctors for testings, such as the SAT, would be paid to alter test score. This story highlights the unfair reality of college admissions. While it is already hard enough, those with money are easily able to get into any college, without having to go through the same troubles as the normal student.

The college admissions process already favors families with more money, as those who can afford private tutors can propel their students to higher SAT scores, better essays, and a more hands-on approach to the admissions process. At Varsity Tutoring in Sterling, VA, one-on-one tutoring starts at $68.00 per hour, and this amount of money quickly adds up. For many students, they cannot afford the expense that comes with private tutoring, causing them to have to discover ways to increase their SAT scores and enhance their essays without the guidance of a professional. This extra help that so many wealthy students receive, gives them a massive advantage over other students who aren’t as fortunate and whose family cannot afford to provide them with private tutoring for college.

The whole situation becomes worse as these wealthy families are able to take a step further when attempting to advance their student’s college experience, as they begin to use that money further than just private tutoring and SAT help. These students are able to buy their way into college, simply because their parents had money.

This unfair advantage give to students who were born into money highlights the massive amount of problems and struggles that those who weren’t born into that money can receive. While it always seems that working hard will get you places, money seems to take students further. And students who lack the money to make their chances of higher education as best as possible are but more steps back from students who have that money. Those born into money already have so many advantages through their life, as this advantage in the higher education system propels them further in front of those who don’t have the money to allow them to receive the best education as possible.

Overall, the college admissions process gives an unfair advantage to those who have money, outcasting many students who do not have the money to get themselves into their dream college.