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OT: Why doesn’t RU give preferential treatment to alumni’s children?

If the school wants more donations and an engaged alumni base, maybe they should give students an experience that they are proud of and cherish, instead of soliciting bribes from alumni who hope their undeserving kids can attend.
Or asking as soon as you get here. At the very least one of the speakers at commencement should always be someone from Alumni Relations or Fundraising.

I have been to enough graduations where this happens. And on school visits with my kids where that topic was a big part of the conversation.

If you don’t ask...
 
If the school wants more donations and an engaged alumni base, maybe they should give students an experience that they are proud of and cherish, instead of soliciting bribes from alumni who hope their undeserving kids can attend.
RU needs all hands on deck to turn that ship around. What's good enough for the Princeton's of the world should be good enough for little RU.
 
Or asking as soon as you get here. At the very least one of the speakers at commencement should always be someone from Alumni Relations or Fundraising.

I have been to enough graduations where this happens. And on school visits with my kids where that topic was a big part of the conversation.

If you don’t ask...

Not AT commencement, but sometime during their senior spring semester.
 
If the school wants more donations and an engaged alumni base, maybe they should give students an experience that they are proud of and cherish, instead of soliciting bribes from alumni who hope their undeserving kids can attend.
It’s difficult for him to stay on topic and not create straw man arguments.
Additional funds from the private sector will help do that.
 
Not AT commencement, but sometime during their senior spring semester.
The reminder can be at commencement AFTER you’ve been to an event at Senior Week hosted by Alumni Relations.

But IMO it should be ongoing during a student’s undergraduate years and begin when you sign on the dotted line in April/May of your senior year of high school.
 
Then no whining about RU's crappy endowment and apathetic alumni.

There are alumni who only donate back to RU because they think it will (or should) help their kids get into Rutgers?

Talk about apathetic alumni
They should try donating to Rutgers because you value your experience and time on campus and want to help the school.
 
Maybe if there was an option to pay full out of state tuition cost for borderline in state applicants, Rutgers will gladly accept them.
 
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Maybe if there was an option to pay full out of state tuition cost for borderline in state applicants, Rutgers will gladly accept them.
I like that idea.

I know many privates do something similar...you really want to come, full freight.
 
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There are alumni who only donate back to RU because they think it will (or should) help their kids get into Rutgers?

Talk about apathetic alumni
They should try donating to Rutgers because you value your experience and time on campus and want to help the school.
Well as someone else already said that’s Rutgers fault and undergrads haven’t been provided with that..the “experience” part of it.

chicken vs. the egg or vicious circle? Which one is it.
 
Well as someone else already said that’s Rutgers fault and undergrads haven’t been provided with that..the “experience” part of it.

chicken vs. the egg or vicious circle? Which one is it.

If an alumnus had such a bad experience, they wouldn’t donate back to the school and expect their (unqualified) kid get special treatment .
They would talk their kids out if RU altogether.

This is about happy alumni who donate to the school, but want their (unqualified) kids to get special treatment.
Sorry - tell little Timmy to study harder next time. Mommy and Daddy’s donation don’t get you in.
 
Maybe if there was an option to pay full out of state tuition cost for borderline in state applicants, Rutgers will gladly accept them.

Please explain to me why I want my alma mater to accept “borderline” candidates?

If you didn’t make the grade to get in without special treatment why would I want my school to slum and accept this “borderline” student?

Am I insane for wanting smarter students at Rutgers and not dumber?
 
Please explain to me why I want my alma mater to accept “borderline” candidates?

If you didn’t make the grade to get in without special treatment why would I want my school to slum and accept this “borderline” student?

Am I insane for wanting smarter students at Rutgers and not dumber?
There are almost 40K in NB alone.

Not everyone is going “pro”, so take the money.
 
There are alumni who only donate back to RU because they think it will (or should) help their kids get into Rutgers?

Talk about apathetic alumni
They should try donating to Rutgers because you value your experience and time on campus and want to help the school.
Don't be so silly and literal. Legacy helps keep a connection to someone and creates a family bond. My dad went to RU, my mom worked for RU for 30 years, my sister went to RU, I went to RU for both undergrad and grad, my wife works for RU (consultant now). Do you think I would care as much for RU if there wasn't all of these connections? Hell no.

RU needs to do a better job to foster such things. There is something called common sense and balance. RU needs to learn about this.
 
Please explain to me why I want my alma mater to accept “borderline” candidates?

If you didn’t make the grade to get in without special treatment why would I want my school to slum and accept this “borderline” student?

Am I insane for wanting smarter students at Rutgers and not dumber?
There are tons of "borderline" students at RU now. RU isn't Princeton.
 
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Do you guys think academic donations will help more than athletics for admission?
 
RU needs all hands on deck to turn that ship around. What's good enough for the Princeton's of the world should be good enough for little RU.

The admission requirements of Princeton and Rutgers are not comparable or even close. Plenty of candidates do not meet Princeton admission requirements, but they are still excellent students. If someone is not admitted to Rutgers, they are likely not a good student and would likely struggle anyway. Rutgers should strive to attract better students, and not mediocre or poor ones.
My daughter is a Rutgers graduate, but she has no other relatives who attended Rutgers.
 
I just find it funny and sad that many in this thread that think its ok to descriminate based on color of one's skin don't agree with Alumni preferential treatment.
 
Speaking only for myself, it’s because doing it that way for more than a century didn’t work out so well.
so it's ok to continue racist practices but not ok to give an edge to people with ties to the school. Makes a ton of sense to me, thanks for clarifying!
 
Some have alluded to this but shouldn’t children of alumni get preferential treatment?
I believe that isn’t the case. The mayor of a north Jersey towns son is going to Penn State because they accepted him first. Meanwhile RU is still considering his application. 🙄

Alumni’s children should get a fastrack application.
I have no idea what Rutgers does now in admissions.

I do know at onetime children of alums received an extra point on the admission rating scale.
 
3 pages of differing opinions and political posturing over a subject so easy to agree upon.

It’s not rocket science.
If you meet or exceed the standards necessary for admission, in some cases the difference could be community service, volunteer work or the fact you had to go directly to work after school to help support your family.
If you meet those standards the fact you are the child of Alumni should be helpful.
The generation applying to Rutgers now are sons and daughters of Rutgers grads who attended a very diverse, multi cultural University.
The school will stay that way by acknowledging the qualified children of Alumni
 
My daughter just received her acceptance into RU because she is a very good student. No family members attended Rutgers. Hard work pays off.
The very good, obviously qualified student sons and daughters of Alumni should also see their hard work pay off.... no?
 
So basically this whole thread is based on a bogus complaint from OP?
I thought it was more of a comment on a story and a question than an actual complaint? It seems like the person in the story had the beef.
3 pages of differing opinions and political posturing over a subject so easy to agree upon.

It’s not rocket science.
If you meet or exceed the standards necessary for admission, in some cases the difference could be community service, volunteer work or the fact you had to go directly to work after school to help support your family.
If you meet those standards the fact you are the child of Alumni should be helpful.
The generation applying to Rutgers now are sons and daughters of Rutgers grads who attended a very diverse, multi cultural University.
The school will stay that way by acknowledging the qualified children of Alumni
And that’s why the application process asks for more than just grades and class rank.
 
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The very good, obviously qualified student sons and daughters of Alumni should also see their hard work pay off.... no?
Yes they also do, I was Just saying she made it without connections. I don’t agree with borderline students with connections getting in over kids that deserve to without connections.
 
not complaining (just stating facts), but I am a former RU scholar athlete (football), my Mom got her undergrad and graduate degree at RU, my sister graduated from the RU school of pharmacy, my wife graduated from RU, my oldest son graduated from the RU school of business and my daughter got her undergrad and graduate degree from RU. But......... our third child who was only a B student and had a decent SAT score did not get accepted. I am also a long time season ticket holder and donate to the school. When he got rejected, I stopped donating, except that I give enough to get my blue parking pass.
Rutgers has plenty of former grads who have had children follow them to New Brunswick . It is a wonderful thing to have a family member accepted there . The problem has been around for a long time regarding nepotism and it could be misconstrued as such especially in 2021. The fact is it goes against the current public sentiment of fairness. Shouldn’t it be based upon equal ? Or does that get tossed aside when it pertains to one’s child whose parent or grand parent graduated from the school. We had one who did and one who went somewhere else. Get over it . Most do get accepted if they are good students and perform well on the standardized tests they’ll get in.
 
Yes they also do, I was Just saying she made it without connections. I don’t agree with borderline students with connections getting in over kids that deserve to without connections.
Nor do I, congratulations on your daughter, what a proud dad you must be....so cool
 
Yes they also do, I was Just saying she made it without connections. I don’t agree with borderline students with connections getting in over kids that deserve to without connections.

Question is, what happens when you have more non-borderline applicants than openings?
 
It sounds like most of relatives of the mayor in the situation went to Rutgers Newark not New Brunswick. New Brunswick is definitely harder to get into than Newark so the individual could have gone to the Newark campus and transferred the following year.
 
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Extra curriculars, participating in sports, entrance exam scores?
And unfortunately “we’re full”

I'd add legacy, but that seems to be where the the debate is. And again, not talking about borderline vs. non-borderline.
 
Like many students at Rutgers and probably on this board, I was the first person in my family to graduate from college. I got in and graduated with high honors (and then law school) all on my own.

The whole point of a state university is to educate the best and brightest in the state, not to enhance the lives of donors' children.

I donate to Rutgers for some kid who grew up like I did without the background of having college in their family, not so my own child can get a leg up. If my own kid can't get into RU on his accomplishments, that's on him.
 
Rutgers is a public university that is supposed to be open to all equally. Alumni preferences would be contrary to that. Students are to be admitted on the basis of merit, not money. I know the University of California takes the same position, much to the frustration of alums who have seen admission standards rise drastically over the years.

Very good point and you’re right. The issue is, that a policy like this does not promote alumni engagement. I’m noticing the kids of season ticket holders who give significantly, going elsewhere, as Rutgers is more difficult to get into. If a kid is borderline, and the parents give more than 4 figures annually, they should accept him.
 
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