The same number of young hopefuls, 70,000, are receiving letters from Harvard University this year inviting them to participate in a competition with a similarly high failure rate. The letter sent to each recipient, selected mostly on the basis of test scores, says "congratulations on your academic achievements" from America's oldest university and urges them to apply for the class of 2009.
The "American Idol" contestants mostly knew how lousy their chances were. They had seen the show before and realized that almost no one got anywhere near Hollywood. But the impressionable high school juniors who are persuaded to apply to Harvard this year because of the unexpected attention from its admissions office are going to be less well informed of their chances.
Washington Post education columnist Jay Mathews, who is worth reading, is less than impressed with the marketing efforts of the most selective colleges.
If memory serves, some of the academic league tables use "selectivity" as a criterion for ranking the college. The harder it is to get in, the higher the ranking. Positive first partial derivative and all that. To repeat: incentives matter. (Hat tip: The Cranky Professor.)
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