TY - JOUR T1 - Divergent: The Time Path of Legacy and Athlete Admissions at Harvard JF - Journal of Human Resources JO - J Hum Resour DO - 10.3368/jhr.0421-11641R1 SP - 0421-11641R1 AU - Peter Arcidiacono AU - Josh Kinsler AU - Tyler Ransom Y1 - 2022/01/13 UR - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2022/01/04/jhr.0421-11641R1.abstract N2 - 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. ER -