Promotes_Healthy_Competition

Point on Universities promotes Healthy Competition Recruiting top quality students is a crucial factor in a university's ability to maintain its national reputation as a top quality institution. In an increasingly fierce competition to attract the limited number of choice students, colleges and universities across the country are stepping up their marketing efforts to attract these students. Several national reports on undergraduate education have appeared over the past few years that encourage universities to act in various ways to create the ideal undergraduate experience at their institutions, particularly in the world of the research university. Indeed, there can be little doubt that the system promotes sometimes-fierce competition: not only among applicants for elite colleges, but also among colleges for elite applicants. Such competition drives colleges to make themselves more attractive in two ways: by reducing prices through scholarships, grants, research stipends, and the like, and by improving their product through inducements like honors designations and programs. In either form, this competition redounds to the economic benefit of admitted students. I believe that early decision biases against students from middle income families and that schools that are interested in socio-economic diversity should eliminate the process entirely and never bring it back. Even if early decision programs set a limit to make it fair and not lock out low-income students, the program would still not be fair. A wealthy student would have a greater chance of being accepted than a poor student of comparable accomplishments. This debate over early decision is not about low income students not being accepted. The debate centers on the fact that a wealthy student solely because of early decision has improved chances. Work Citied Golden. D. “The Price of Admission.” The Wall Street Journal. 2006.