EMPATHY > OVERACHIEVEMENT. “Just making people jump through hoops because we can—we don’t want to do that,” says Stephen Farmer, the vice provost for enrollment and undergraduate admissions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He’s referring to the current college admissions process and its tendency to value personal success (test scores, résumé-boosting extracurriculars) over concern for others.
Today a coalition of colleges and universities led by the Harvard Graduate School of Education released a report, “Turning the Tide,” that says colleges and universities should focus more on ethical engagement than test scores when considering prospective students. The report is part of a two-year campaign to reshape existing college admissions processes.
