Hacker News Reader

Comment by villson | Hacker News Reader

Wow, the privilege this missive screams is deafening. The writer comes so close to realizing their privilege but pulls away at the last moment.

View on HN

Yeah, smart kids are out and rich kids who can afford to start non-profits and hire image specialists are in.

Well, of course he's still more privileged than others but he definitely makes a point.

While rich kids do get an edge with private tutoring and other support from their parents, well designed standardized tests allow intelligent + hard working candidates without many resources to get in.

If only CV and grades matter, the system is way more rigged in favor of the rich kids.

Also, it’s far cheaper for schools and the government to provide SAT tutoring to poorer students than say put them through 10 years of piano classes.

If private SAT tutoring is an edge for richer students it’s one that can more easily be minimized than really any other edge rich students may have.

I think the issues of privilege are worth considering, but I think they’re not the only dimension worth thinking about.

Consider this hypothetical. You’ve got two equally wealthy kids who go to the same private school, take all the same classes, and take the same SAT prep class.

Kid 1 has a perfect GPA and a 90th percentile SAT score. Kid 2 has perfect SAT score and a 90th percentile GPA. If there’s only one spot, which kid should a college admissions office pick?

I love this comment. Because it doesn't try to even explain the reasoning.

How so?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com