PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Peter Arcidiacono
AU  - Josh Kinsler
AU  - Tyler Ransom
TI  - Divergent: The Time Path of Legacy and Athlete Admissions at Harvard
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.0421-11641R1
DP  - 2022 Jan 13
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 0421-11641R1
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2022/01/04/jhr.0421-11641R1.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2022/01/04/jhr.0421-11641R1.full
AB  - We examine how increased admissions competition at elite US colleges has affected the admissions advantage that legacies and athletes (LA) receive. Using 18 years of Harvard admissions data, we show that non-legacy, non-athlete (NLNA) applications expanded while LA applications remained flat. Yet, the share of LA admits remained stable, implying substantial increases in LA admissions advantages. These facts imply a strong degree of complementarity in the number of LA admits and overall admit quality. If the admissions advantages for LA applicants had been constant throughout this period, there would have been a large increase in the number of minority admits.