Legacies admitted at 37% rate

Though legacy admissions rates are more relaxed than overall admissions standards at universities nationwide, prospective students have mixed feelings on the practice.

Currently, legacy applicants to the University see an average admissions rate of 37 percent compared to the overall admissions rate of 21 percent and almost equal to the Class of 2013 early decision admissions rate of 36 percent.

"That doesn't strike me as all that high or out of the ordinary," Education Consultant Steven Goodman said. "Normally when you have an early decision and legacy at about the same rate, that's not a huge cause for concern."

Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Christoph Guttentag said the comparison in rates is "typical" of Duke's peer institutions.

As a case in point, Princeton University's overall admissions rate dipped below 10 percent last year, but 40 percent of legacy applicants were admitted to the Class of 2012, according to an April 2008 ABC News report. Though the practice may be generally accepted among prestigious universities, it has drawn some criticism, particularly from students who do not benefit from it.

"I'm sure if you look at the legacy kids that did get in, they have tons of merit and talent," said Kevin Tao, a sophomore without legacy connections. "But [their higher rate of admission] goes against the idea that Duke is a meritocracy."

Perceptions of legacies

"I would have to say that as a legacy, I feel like people do judge me and think that I may not have had what it takes to get in on my own," said freshman Annelise Mesler, whose mother and father both attended Duke. "I talk to my friends about this, and they tell me I don't seem like a legacy, so obviously there is that stereotype."

Experts added that the pool faces other stereotypes as well.

"Remember that a number of alumni applicants tend to be very strong," Goodman said. "But is [the legacy applicant pool] twice as strong? That's what it comes down to."

Some students said that although legacy admits may be equally qualified, they object to the practice on principle.

"I definitely think it's unfair because [legacy admits] didn't do anything to deserve that higher rate of admission," Tao said. "You don't get to choose who your parents were."

Value of donations

Part of alumni legacies include educating their children at Duke to build a generational familial legacy, but many also give financially to their alma maters.

For 2007-2008, more than 41,000 alumni gave money to support Duke, comprising some 15 percent of sources for the $385.7 million in donations, according to "Giving to Duke." With recent losses in the value of the University's endowment and drops in donations overall, alumni contributions could be more valuable than ever.

The current economic situation, however, will not affect Duke's rate of legacy admissions, Guttentag said.

"Consideration for members of the Duke family doesn't have anything to do with the current state of the University's finances," he said. "There has been no discussion that we would do anything different this year."

But though Duke and other universities with comparable or even greater wealth are likely to remain committed to this standard, other institutions may be forced to favor legacy applicants more in the admissions process, especially if the economic downturn persists or worsens, Guttentag said.

"What I do think is possible is for schools that are more tuition-driven, with a greater percentage of income from tuition, to look more closely at the proportion of students that are paying the entire amount [of tuition] compared to the proportion that are receiving financial aid," Guttentag said. "But for colleges like Duke, it is very unlikely that the admit rate for legacy candidates would be driven by anything other than the individual applicant."

Goodman echoed the observation that though some schools' admissions policies may be affected, Duke likely would not see any effect from the recession.

"It'll have an effect on Elon [University] and other schools in North Carolina, but I don't see it having an effect on Duke, and if it does it'll just be on the margins," he said.

He said, however, that Duke's youth necessitates alumni outreach as well as the preservation of connections.

"Duke's [legacy admissions rate] is traditionally higher than other schools simply because [legacies are] a fundraising arm of Duke," he said. "Duke simply doesn't have the sheer number of years to reach back that older schools do, so Duke has to rely more on alumni donations."

Though there is no official data on drops in alumni donations as a result of rejected legacy applicants, individual cases do exist, Guttentag said.

"We all know individuals whose children wanted to attend and have not been admitted, and who stopped donating either their time or their effort to the University, and you know, it's understandable," he said. "Some people are very hurt by that."

The importance of alumni donations is underscored by its inclusion in measures used to rank colleges and universities. U.S. News and World Report, which publishes influential annual rankings of institutions of higher education, cites "alumni giving" as one of seven factors under consideration for its rankings.

"There are schools that actively pursue their alumni to give, specifically to affect the rankings," Guttentag said. "We don't do that, but it goes to show how multi-generational ties to an institution reverberate in all kinds of dimensions."

Alumni serve the University in many ways beyond simply making financial contributions, Guttentag said, including conducting interviews with applicants from across the country and providing career help to Duke graduates.

"That's not to minimize the importance of financial donations," he said. "But from our perspective, those relationships [between multiple generations of alumni and the University] are worth being sensitive to."

Striking a balance

Although many aspects of having alumni connections are beneficial to a university, students said they fear that legacy admissions may come at the expense of potentially more qualified candidates.

"I think [legacy admissions] make perfect sense from the University's perspective. But if I were to look at if from an ordinary student, I do think it's kind of unfair," Mesler said. "You have to find the perfect balance between sense for the University and preserving academic reputation."

Special consideration of legacy applicants, however, could accomplish both goals.

Long-standing legacy connections are part of what give institutions like Harvard and Yale universities their celebrity, by establishing a sense of tradition and fostering lifelong loyalty in alumni, Guttentag said. As a relatively new university, Duke can benefit from creating those kinds of connections early, he added.

"We're a young university, and I think our reputation is better known now than it was 15 to 25 years ago," he said. "But there are all kinds of benefits to having people of all ages and generations committed to Duke, and one part of that is their opportunity to represent Duke in their community."

Even with some advantage, children and grandchildren of alumni have to compete in the same applicant pool as everyone else, Michael Schoenfeld, vice president for public affairs and government relations, wrote in an e-mail.

"We are constantly reviewing our admissions process to ensure that it is fair, thorough and inclusive and meets the goals and values of the University, and we will certainly continue to do so in the future," he said.