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Guilty Admissions: The Bribes, Favors, and Phonies behind the College Cheating Scandal
This entertaining exposé on how the other half gets in tells the shockingly true story of the Varsity Blues scandal, and all of the crazy parents, privilege, and con men involved.
Guilty Admissions tells the story of an unscrupulous college counselor named Rick Singer and how he preyed on the desperation of some of the country's wealthiest families living in a world defined by fierce competition. They function under constant pressure to get their kids into the "right" schools, starting with pre-school; non-stop fundraising and donation demands in the form of multi-million-dollar galas and private parties; and a community of deeply insecure parents who will do anything to get their kids into name-brand colleges in order to maintain their own A-list status.
Investigative reporter Nicole LaPorte lays bare the source of this insecurity—that in 2019, no special "hook" in the form of legacy status, athletic talent, or financial giving can guarantee a child's entrance into an elite school. The result is paranoia, deception, and true crimes at the peak of the American social pyramid.
With a glittering cast of Hollywood actors—including Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin—hedge fund CEOs, sales executives, and media titans, Guilty Admissions is a soap-opera-slash-sneak-peek-behind-the-curtains at America's richest social circles; an examination of the cutthroat world of college admissions; and a parable of American society in 2019, when the country is run by a crass tycoon and all totems of status and achievement have become transactional and removed from traditions of ethical restraint.
Guilty Admissions tells the story of an unscrupulous college counselor named Rick Singer and how he preyed on the desperation of some of the country's wealthiest families living in a world defined by fierce competition. They function under constant pressure to get their kids into the "right" schools, starting with pre-school; non-stop fundraising and donation demands in the form of multi-million-dollar galas and private parties; and a community of deeply insecure parents who will do anything to get their kids into name-brand colleges in order to maintain their own A-list status.
Investigative reporter Nicole LaPorte lays bare the source of this insecurity—that in 2019, no special "hook" in the form of legacy status, athletic talent, or financial giving can guarantee a child's entrance into an elite school. The result is paranoia, deception, and true crimes at the peak of the American social pyramid.
With a glittering cast of Hollywood actors—including Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin—hedge fund CEOs, sales executives, and media titans, Guilty Admissions is a soap-opera-slash-sneak-peek-behind-the-curtains at America's richest social circles; an examination of the cutthroat world of college admissions; and a parable of American society in 2019, when the country is run by a crass tycoon and all totems of status and achievement have become transactional and removed from traditions of ethical restraint.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published February 23, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
January 14, 2021
I followed this story in the news and through it truly wondered how Full House mom Lori Loughlin felt she was innocent. One chapter in and I did somewhat of a flip or at least understood the rabbit hole these parents fell into and the culture which feeds it beginning with the birth of their children. If you want to know the how and the why of this story, Nicole LaPorte’s book Guilty Admissions is a must for your 2021 reading list.
March 22, 2021
this is pretty closely aligned to the documentary that just landed on Netflix. Incredible, I mean who even knew there was such a thing as a $350 an hour "coach" to help prepare your toddler to ace their kindergarten admission interview? Who knew there was such a thing as a kindergarten admission interview? These rich people are crazy, good to see them land in prison and why oh why do supposedly intelligent people continually fall for pathologically lying con artists, anyway?
March 21, 2021
Well this book was just fantastic. I picked it up as a fan of investigative journalism, as well as a product of an LA magnet school and my own round of (legal!) independent college counseling as a high school student.
First of all, this book is so damn readable. I tore through it in a day, because Nicole LaPorte laid out the story so well. Rather than focusing on the famous bad actors in this scandal from the outset, LaPorte draws you into the world of how this could happen by making this as much a book about parenting and education as it is a story about a scandal. While she doesn’t once try to invoke sympathy for the wealthy parents at the center of this scandal, by the end, you can clearly understand how rich, well-connected parents (many who could have used their own connections!) were able to make these choices. That the answer wasn’t *just* wealth and greed shocked me, and the stylistic choice to not introduce the celebrities until the ecosystem that is upper middle class parenting was fully explained worked very well to help readers reach that conclusion.
I’ve never read a book so well outlined - it’s a weird compliment but every single thread was answered, and the story was laid out in a way where it wasn’t just told chronologically - it tracked the arc of emotions that any parent would feel, before zeroing in on how these rich ones then took that common emotion to the level of felony.
If you’re a fan of investigative journalism, scandals of the rich, education, or creative non fiction, this book is very much for you.
First of all, this book is so damn readable. I tore through it in a day, because Nicole LaPorte laid out the story so well. Rather than focusing on the famous bad actors in this scandal from the outset, LaPorte draws you into the world of how this could happen by making this as much a book about parenting and education as it is a story about a scandal. While she doesn’t once try to invoke sympathy for the wealthy parents at the center of this scandal, by the end, you can clearly understand how rich, well-connected parents (many who could have used their own connections!) were able to make these choices. That the answer wasn’t *just* wealth and greed shocked me, and the stylistic choice to not introduce the celebrities until the ecosystem that is upper middle class parenting was fully explained worked very well to help readers reach that conclusion.
I’ve never read a book so well outlined - it’s a weird compliment but every single thread was answered, and the story was laid out in a way where it wasn’t just told chronologically - it tracked the arc of emotions that any parent would feel, before zeroing in on how these rich ones then took that common emotion to the level of felony.
If you’re a fan of investigative journalism, scandals of the rich, education, or creative non fiction, this book is very much for you.
June 15, 2021
I think the premise and early chapters are incredibly strong, showing how the societal pressures and entitlement of the wealth manifests at an early age. As the story went on I found some of the content very dry and difficult to follow, with the final chapter not providing quite the closure I wanted from this book! I wonder if it had been published after all of the sentencing was done if it would make for a strong read?
November 22, 2023
Wellll... this was super thorough and informative.
The downside... this was SUPER THOROUGH and information - to the point of nausea. It wasn't until the last 10% of the book that you got into the actual prosecution of those involved. And honestly, that felt a lot to be desired.
My suggestion - the documentary on Netflix is better. The title is "Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal".
The downside... this was SUPER THOROUGH and information - to the point of nausea. It wasn't until the last 10% of the book that you got into the actual prosecution of those involved. And honestly, that felt a lot to be desired.
My suggestion - the documentary on Netflix is better. The title is "Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal".
April 8, 2021
Great book! I’ve heard so much about this scandal so I was aware of the background on this, but it was interesting to learn about the tiny details the media hasn’t put out there. The author did a good job of highlighting that. I would recommend.
August 1, 2021
I listened to the audiobook of GUILTY ADMISSIONS and have never been so happy not to have grown up wealthy and privileged. Investigative reporter takes readers through the pressures parents take on to have their toddlers get into the best private preschools so they can into their best private grade schools so they can get into the best private high schools so they can get into the best universities so parents can pat themselves on their backs and say, “we’re the best parents and we have the best child.”
One wise child development expert cautioned that if a child needs tutoring for preschool (let that sink in), she’ll need tutoring to be successful in nursery school. Propel that forward to Harvard. No attention is paid to the child’s strengths, weaknesses or desires, only the parents’ narcissistic desires.
An example of a child being pulled out of soccer at *age three* due to lack of kicking straight (let that sink in) in favor of swimming so he could excel and have a competitive advantage for COLLEGE made me cringe. The importance of muscle development, self-esteem or the child’s preference didn’t matter.
Though Rick Singer is a huge sleazeball, I don’t blame him. I blame the parents for their terrible values. If not for the parents, he wouldn’t have been successful in his cheating. He’s a criminal for sure, but without the parents there would have been no crime.
I think the parents got off light for their crimes, with the exception of Felicity Huffman who admitted her guilt right away, showed appropriate understanding and remorse and didn’t try to get out of her short sentence. The damage she did to her daughters and family is her biggest consequence, which she realized. I respect her for that.
I’d like to see where the families are in ten years, how the relationships between parents and children have evolved. Did the kids turn out to be self-centered assholes? Did they learn from their parents mistakes? Are any of them better people?
One wise child development expert cautioned that if a child needs tutoring for preschool (let that sink in), she’ll need tutoring to be successful in nursery school. Propel that forward to Harvard. No attention is paid to the child’s strengths, weaknesses or desires, only the parents’ narcissistic desires.
An example of a child being pulled out of soccer at *age three* due to lack of kicking straight (let that sink in) in favor of swimming so he could excel and have a competitive advantage for COLLEGE made me cringe. The importance of muscle development, self-esteem or the child’s preference didn’t matter.
Though Rick Singer is a huge sleazeball, I don’t blame him. I blame the parents for their terrible values. If not for the parents, he wouldn’t have been successful in his cheating. He’s a criminal for sure, but without the parents there would have been no crime.
I think the parents got off light for their crimes, with the exception of Felicity Huffman who admitted her guilt right away, showed appropriate understanding and remorse and didn’t try to get out of her short sentence. The damage she did to her daughters and family is her biggest consequence, which she realized. I respect her for that.
I’d like to see where the families are in ten years, how the relationships between parents and children have evolved. Did the kids turn out to be self-centered assholes? Did they learn from their parents mistakes? Are any of them better people?
May 6, 2022
Wow. Despite having been in the test prep/college admissions industry for 15 years in a past life, and knowing all the pressures of that world, I could never expect the schemes and depths to which Rick Singer and his confederates would go to game the system for their clients. It is always the expectation of those in scams that they won't get caught, but how such impunity is possible in the information age is beyond me.
Very much worth a read if you want to dive deep into how this scandal developed and mostly ended.
Very much worth a read if you want to dive deep into how this scandal developed and mostly ended.
March 24, 2021
A deep dive into the Varsity Blues scandal.
June 30, 2021
Highly recommend this book for anyone looking for an engrossing read. Though there has been a lot of coverage of the Varsity Blues scandal already, author Nicole LaPorte charts new territory to explore the psychological motivations of the key players and the social effects of the entire tutoring-industrial complex. Lots of food for thought for anyone with a kid in school, and a healthy dose of schadenfreude to boot. I listened to it on Audible and the reading is fantastic.
December 3, 2021
A compelling story in which the reader has no sympathy for the con man or those being conned. At some point, however, editors have to start telling nonfiction authors to stop ending their books with an epilogue in which they attempt to explain the meaning of the events they describe, à la, “Varsity Blues, as the case was dubbed, is about the inequities of class, and how that plays out in college admissions, i.e., more ammunition against the premise that higher education in this country is the meritocracy it claims to be. It is a story about the power and entitlement of the (mostly white) rich in a country where the wealth divide is strained to the breaking point it is about…” etc. If the writer does her job, as LaPorte does, the reader can make these judgments.
An interesting note about these judgments is that LaPorte often talks about how the families who gamed the system were wealthy, white, arrogant, status-crazed—all true. But she never once mentions their political affiliations. The reader can figure those out pretty easily when told of the fundraisers the parents attend, etc. But LaPorte never goes full on to nail them for their hypocrisy.
I just read the dust jacket, after finishing the book, and it describes the book as “a parable of American society in 2019, when the country is run by a crass tycoon.” Crass tycoon to be sure, but none of the parents in this book were among the deplorables. Like the author, whoever wrote this blurb never mentions the political affiliations of all the criminals.
The other issue is that the book is a great indictment of people buying their way into elite universities to which they’d never be admitted on their merits. But again she pulls her punches, never mentioning that “donations” to a school are only one of the ways that students who would never meet the academic standards are admitted into top schools. The only difference is that these students are admitted for the sake of the admission office’s status instead of the LA parents’. It’s the same scam.
An interesting note about these judgments is that LaPorte often talks about how the families who gamed the system were wealthy, white, arrogant, status-crazed—all true. But she never once mentions their political affiliations. The reader can figure those out pretty easily when told of the fundraisers the parents attend, etc. But LaPorte never goes full on to nail them for their hypocrisy.
I just read the dust jacket, after finishing the book, and it describes the book as “a parable of American society in 2019, when the country is run by a crass tycoon.” Crass tycoon to be sure, but none of the parents in this book were among the deplorables. Like the author, whoever wrote this blurb never mentions the political affiliations of all the criminals.
The other issue is that the book is a great indictment of people buying their way into elite universities to which they’d never be admitted on their merits. But again she pulls her punches, never mentioning that “donations” to a school are only one of the ways that students who would never meet the academic standards are admitted into top schools. The only difference is that these students are admitted for the sake of the admission office’s status instead of the LA parents’. It’s the same scam.
March 21, 2021
This book is a must read for a few types of readers:
1) Readers who enjoyed investigative journalism as Bad Blood, The Only Plane in the Sky, Catch and Kill, and Billion Dollar Whale.
2) People who wonder what kind of circumstances has led to the 2019 scandal known as "Varsity Blues" that involved rich businessmen as well as Hollywood celebrities, and why LA/USC was the perfect location for the kind of exploitations to take place. The book introduced the readers to the competitive world in college admission and offered a detailed background of Rick Singer's upbringing and personality- which indirectly caused his later criminal activities. The scandal exposed the problems of college admission, loopholes in athlete recruits, as well as the side/backdoor process of the privileged few. I think this book should also be read by:
3) Educators, parents, high school counselors as well as psychologists catering to children/teens.
My favorite part of the book was the chapter about how rich parents prepare their child as early as preschool. Chapter 4: Toddler Admissions Mania. I laughed out loud so many times since I'm a mom of 3 young adults and used to live in an area with similar demographics/income as the parents presented in the book. There's so much more I love about this book since read like a plot-driven fiction that the readers would be unable to put down. I'll end this review with a quote:
"This is not about what school your child attends ot does not attend. This is about the morals and values you instill in your children. That's what matters, That's what gets you from point A to point B."
~Michele Gathrid, director of a feeder preschool.
1) Readers who enjoyed investigative journalism as Bad Blood, The Only Plane in the Sky, Catch and Kill, and Billion Dollar Whale.
2) People who wonder what kind of circumstances has led to the 2019 scandal known as "Varsity Blues" that involved rich businessmen as well as Hollywood celebrities, and why LA/USC was the perfect location for the kind of exploitations to take place. The book introduced the readers to the competitive world in college admission and offered a detailed background of Rick Singer's upbringing and personality- which indirectly caused his later criminal activities. The scandal exposed the problems of college admission, loopholes in athlete recruits, as well as the side/backdoor process of the privileged few. I think this book should also be read by:
3) Educators, parents, high school counselors as well as psychologists catering to children/teens.
My favorite part of the book was the chapter about how rich parents prepare their child as early as preschool. Chapter 4: Toddler Admissions Mania. I laughed out loud so many times since I'm a mom of 3 young adults and used to live in an area with similar demographics/income as the parents presented in the book. There's so much more I love about this book since read like a plot-driven fiction that the readers would be unable to put down. I'll end this review with a quote:
"This is not about what school your child attends ot does not attend. This is about the morals and values you instill in your children. That's what matters, That's what gets you from point A to point B."
~Michele Gathrid, director of a feeder preschool.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 21, 2021
More focused on the sociopathy of Rick Singer (as victimizer of those poor parents; LaPorte covers the entertainment industry, and she gets the LA-rich-person sociology from the inside) than on the coaches and other enablers (which the WSJ reporters' book handles well) that made it possible. Some bizarre descriptive lapses when conveying basic information, but an engrossing read. Most horrifying quotation, from among very many options: (p.85) "But parents who do apply rarely leave their chances to a few phone calls, seeing preschool admissions as a game that requires working every connection and advantage. To increase their odds, they solicit recommendations from current or former Circle [the school in question] families as well as, in some cases, endorsements from influencers in the West LA baby and toddler scene." Influencers in the West LA baby and toddler scene.
August 7, 2021
I previously enjoyed the Netflix documentary on this topic. The college admissions scandal was an insight into the lives of the rich and privileged and was gripping to watch it unravel and unfold. I usually like non fiction accounts of frauds and scandals, like that of Bad Blood. However, here I didn’t feel engaged by all the information. It may have been thoroughly researched but for me as a reader, I didn’t find it took hold of the story and presented in a way that allowed me to settle into story and get hooked.
December 21, 2020
An amazing account of an unbelievable scandal. Brilliant research by Nicole LaPorte captures not just the machinations and growth of this awful scheme, but the corruption of the entire admissions world beneath it. A must read!
July 11, 2021
I mean, this book had to have been a rush job, particularly considering the pandemic, but ... it doesn't read like one. Nicole LaPorte and her editors did a very good job putting together a clear, concise explanation of the Varsity Blues scandals and it was a compelling read.
January 26, 2021
Wow, super informative and timely. I loved the way this book was set up and the details were just enough that you got all of the information you needed but didn't feel bogged down. It was an easy read in that most things were in layman's terms and flowed really well. Normally books like this would be choppy but I didn't feel this way at all. Excellent work and very informative. This is your one stop shop for behind the scene information on the college admissions scandals.
April 29, 2021
Comprehensive and balanced examination of the college admissions scandal. Lots of fun to read in a schadenfreude sort of way.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.
July 7, 2023
4.5. A fascinating look at the entitlement, elite attitude and absolute different stratosphere that the people in these circles ran and how they justified the varsity blues scandal.
Read
December 14, 2023Cocktails & Crimes pick for December.
January 12, 2025
Well researched and thoroughly told, but I noticed some awkward phrasing/errors that should’ve been caught during editing. Overall, an awesome read about a fascinating scandal!
April 30, 2025
Very informative, but it felt very repetitive. I wish there was more information on the aftermath of everything. I guess that might still be getting sorted out.
April 8, 2024
The writing wasn't bad I just kept wishing the book was almost done. It might have been more captivating for me if I hadn't already watched the Netflix documentary that came out about a year after the scandal.
December 5, 2021
I was given an advanced copy of Nicole LaPorte’s “Guilty Admissions: The Bribes, Favors, and Phonies Behind the College Cheating Scandal” to read and review through NetGalley.
Working in colleges admissions, I was particularly interested in how LaPorte might cover this story compared to the Korn & Levitz book, “Unacceptable,” that came out last year. Ultimately it was a decent retelling of the athletics recruitment scandal by an author who is able to hold a reader’s interest.
I found LaPorte’s “Guilty Admissions” to seem a bit more sympathetic or defensive of those implicated in the cheating scandal. It had a very California-centric vibe and, as an East Coast reader I felt lacking the context, at times, to see things exactly the way the author described. That said, it was a solid nonfiction book that describes some of the detail behind the Varsity Blues scandal.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about this scandal.
Working in colleges admissions, I was particularly interested in how LaPorte might cover this story compared to the Korn & Levitz book, “Unacceptable,” that came out last year. Ultimately it was a decent retelling of the athletics recruitment scandal by an author who is able to hold a reader’s interest.
I found LaPorte’s “Guilty Admissions” to seem a bit more sympathetic or defensive of those implicated in the cheating scandal. It had a very California-centric vibe and, as an East Coast reader I felt lacking the context, at times, to see things exactly the way the author described. That said, it was a solid nonfiction book that describes some of the detail behind the Varsity Blues scandal.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about this scandal.
September 2, 2020
**I received and voluntarily read an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
The first of many books that I will be reading about the college admissions scandal.
The beginning is a little dry and slow, but not the worst I've read.
I had hoped that maybe I would be able to see why these parents felt that getting their children into college was worth anything, even jail time. After all, most parents feel this way, right?
Spoiler alert- for most of the parents involved in the scandal it boils down to this: their children could basically get into any school EXCEPT the ones the parents wanted. And if poor little Beth down the block has to suffer through a state school so my perfect little Susan can go to an Ivy, who cares? My perfect Susan is way more special (and rich!) than little Beth anyway. And who cares that Susan has never rowed (or other sport) before and little Beth has been on the crew team for years? Look at how pretty my Susan with her perfect blowout will look in the uniform compared to little Beth and that not-on-purpose messy bun! Here, have tons of money to make sure that Susan gets into the spot that Beth actually worked for and deserves.
Overall, it's a nice job on the writing. It's not something that I would read more than once, but I'm glad I read it. I didn't have any sympathy for the parents and very little for their children before I read this, and I have even less sympathy for their children now.
The first of many books that I will be reading about the college admissions scandal.
The beginning is a little dry and slow, but not the worst I've read.
I had hoped that maybe I would be able to see why these parents felt that getting their children into college was worth anything, even jail time. After all, most parents feel this way, right?
Spoiler alert- for most of the parents involved in the scandal it boils down to this: their children could basically get into any school EXCEPT the ones the parents wanted. And if poor little Beth down the block has to suffer through a state school so my perfect little Susan can go to an Ivy, who cares? My perfect Susan is way more special (and rich!) than little Beth anyway. And who cares that Susan has never rowed (or other sport) before and little Beth has been on the crew team for years? Look at how pretty my Susan with her perfect blowout will look in the uniform compared to little Beth and that not-on-purpose messy bun! Here, have tons of money to make sure that Susan gets into the spot that Beth actually worked for and deserves.
Overall, it's a nice job on the writing. It's not something that I would read more than once, but I'm glad I read it. I didn't have any sympathy for the parents and very little for their children before I read this, and I have even less sympathy for their children now.
June 24, 2021
about the Varsity Blues college admissions scandal, with heavy emphasis on Rick Singer the ringleader connecting wealthy parents with corrupt college admissions and athletics people. If you saw the netflix documentary or followed the story closely in the papers, most of it will be familiar.
I was amused by the backstories on:
1. Rick Singer himself -- fellow students from Trinity U in San Antonio [fun fact--a place I interviewed for a faculty job in the late 1980s] apparently trashed him to the author ("around campus, he became known as Rick the Dick", p. 50).
2. the "toddler admissions mania" chapter about rich people in LA starting the school competitive craziness early -- kindergarten admissions assessment tutoring apparently runs $350/hour (p. 95). Dang. I crushed kindergarten (by day 2, my Mom let me walk back and forth myself. I regularly took exceptional naps on my personal purple mat, often washed my hands when Mrs. McClelland would say to, racked up a lot of time on the playground............) and would have been happy to relay my tips to future students for half that much. Didn't know this lucrative field existed.
Once she's in to the main stories, it's pretty predictable -- coaches under pressure to raise funds cheat; greedy amoral guy facilitates cheating for big paydays; people with ungodly amounts of money used to throwing it around to get what they want do so on behalf of their kids. The scope is remarkable, but not the basic phenomena/motivations.
I was amused by the backstories on:
1. Rick Singer himself -- fellow students from Trinity U in San Antonio [fun fact--a place I interviewed for a faculty job in the late 1980s] apparently trashed him to the author ("around campus, he became known as Rick the Dick", p. 50).
2. the "toddler admissions mania" chapter about rich people in LA starting the school competitive craziness early -- kindergarten admissions assessment tutoring apparently runs $350/hour (p. 95). Dang. I crushed kindergarten (by day 2, my Mom let me walk back and forth myself. I regularly took exceptional naps on my personal purple mat, often washed my hands when Mrs. McClelland would say to, racked up a lot of time on the playground............) and would have been happy to relay my tips to future students for half that much. Didn't know this lucrative field existed.
Once she's in to the main stories, it's pretty predictable -- coaches under pressure to raise funds cheat; greedy amoral guy facilitates cheating for big paydays; people with ungodly amounts of money used to throwing it around to get what they want do so on behalf of their kids. The scope is remarkable, but not the basic phenomena/motivations.
June 1, 2023
3.5 stars.
An in depth look at the Varisty Blues scandal that rocked the world of college admissions a few years ago.
I enjoyed this book, although the first half did drag a bit.
Ultimately, though, the author researched this well and didn’t hold back on justified accusations.
However, she did use a lot of direct quotes from wire taps and interviews that made some sections kinda hard to follow (sometimes writing exactly the way people speak can make sentences confusing to read).
I also think that, while these people were clearly guilty and should be punished, SWAT teams busting into houses and shoving guns in teenagers faces over wire fraud was probably?? Not the move?? Maybe chill down just a smidge, US government?
An in depth look at the Varisty Blues scandal that rocked the world of college admissions a few years ago.
I enjoyed this book, although the first half did drag a bit.
Ultimately, though, the author researched this well and didn’t hold back on justified accusations.
However, she did use a lot of direct quotes from wire taps and interviews that made some sections kinda hard to follow (sometimes writing exactly the way people speak can make sentences confusing to read).
I also think that, while these people were clearly guilty and should be punished, SWAT teams busting into houses and shoving guns in teenagers faces over wire fraud was probably?? Not the move?? Maybe chill down just a smidge, US government?
March 20, 2021
I found this audiobook so interesting. It was well organized and laid out the problems — first world without doubt — that are associated with school admission for the children of the 1%. Enter Rick Singer who is brash and pushy but knows the intricacies of college admission. His private tutoring is increasingly unethical but his reputation carries the day for many parents. The book points out the different coaches involved in his scheme and also the parents who for their own reasons chose to use him. I felt compassion for some of the parents and disdain for the arrogant parents. It is a really good book and left me thinking about the whole issue of college.
October 29, 2021
Could have used some heavy editing. Way too much unnecessary background information in the beginning. I want to rate 2.5.
November 21, 2022
Before I get to the rest of the review, this is driving me nuts: who was Devin Sloane's (one of the charged parents) mother? She was an Olympic figure skater but apparently not a household name and she died around 2017. You'd think I'd be able to figure out her name with that information, but so far, nothing. Let me know if you know!
Anyway: this does a really good job recounting the Operation Varsity Blues scandal and giving some context for the circumstances under which it happened. The majority of the parents charged were from California, and rich people from California are kind of a different breed from East Coast rich people. More of them are "new money," and since so many elite colleges are in the Northeast, they aren't necessarily familiar with, say, competitive but small liberal arts schools. There's also a private school culture in LA that stressed me out just reading about it- the parents have this sense that the teachers and staff work for THEM because they're paying. (My friend who works at a private school in SoCal confirms this.) And what the parents want out of the staff is to get their kids into elite colleges. There's the same get-into-the-right-preschool thing that exists for rich people in New York, too, and private schools like Harvard-Westlake will send double-digit numbers of kids in each class to Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc. Parents have the attitude that the school OWES them a good college acceptance for their kids. And apparently, lying/exaggerating about a learning difference or mental health issue to get extra time on the SATs is rampant at these schools (I had no idea- apparently it's not uncommon even among kids who weren't involved in this). But, of course, getting into elite schools gets harder and harder every year as more kids apply. People stress over grades, test scores, athletics, extracurriculars, community service, college essays, etc. (Back in 1935, this was good enough to get JFK into Harvard, though.) Personally, I remember applying to college and how frustrating and arbitrary admissions could seem- I got into BC and was waitlisted at Tufts, one of my friends from school got into Tufts and was waitlisted at BC, so who knows what those admissions officers were thinking- and how annoying it is that athletics can often override academics with admissions preferences.
Enter Rick Singer, an arrogant, sleazy college counselor offering to get kids into their dream schools through "the side door," once their parents paid hundreds of thousands of dollars supposedly to his charitable foundation but really as bribes to coaches, athletic directors, and people taking tests for kids. The guy sometimes got overconfident- in one particularly egregious move, he put on an application, without the family's consent, that a rich white girl was Black and a first-generation college student, and for that he got caught. But for the most part, he was savvy about what buttons to push. He sought out coaches and athletic departments he knew would take the money. In some cases, he flat-out lied and said a kid wasn't likely to get into their top-choice school without his help when that actually wasn't true. I do have some limited sympathy for the mothers he manipulated through mom-guilt.
Someone would have made this up if it hadn't really happened. And honestly, the line between what's legal and what's not sometimes seems arbitrary- like, how is it legal for children of big donors to get in when they couldn't on their own merits? Why is SO much weight put on athletics? Do parents really not get that you can succeed in life without going to your first-choice college? One parent, in his own defense, talked about how every parent knows how important it is to have a college counselor. And...no. Every parent does not know that, outside of your bubble, dude. And plenty of us manage to get into great colleges without spending zillions of dollars on schools and tutors and illegal bribes! I went to a pretty normal suburban public high school in Massachusetts. Three kids out of my class of 360-something went to Harvard. Several others got into other great schools. Arbitrary as the process can seem, you can get in by merit. And these parents robbed their kids of that feeling of merit by doubting their kids' abilities to get in on their own. (I feel terrible for the kids involved, none of whom were charged and most of whom had no idea what their parents were doing.)
Remind me again never to leave Massachusetts. Private school here is a complete waste of money.
Anyway: this does a really good job recounting the Operation Varsity Blues scandal and giving some context for the circumstances under which it happened. The majority of the parents charged were from California, and rich people from California are kind of a different breed from East Coast rich people. More of them are "new money," and since so many elite colleges are in the Northeast, they aren't necessarily familiar with, say, competitive but small liberal arts schools. There's also a private school culture in LA that stressed me out just reading about it- the parents have this sense that the teachers and staff work for THEM because they're paying. (My friend who works at a private school in SoCal confirms this.) And what the parents want out of the staff is to get their kids into elite colleges. There's the same get-into-the-right-preschool thing that exists for rich people in New York, too, and private schools like Harvard-Westlake will send double-digit numbers of kids in each class to Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc. Parents have the attitude that the school OWES them a good college acceptance for their kids. And apparently, lying/exaggerating about a learning difference or mental health issue to get extra time on the SATs is rampant at these schools (I had no idea- apparently it's not uncommon even among kids who weren't involved in this). But, of course, getting into elite schools gets harder and harder every year as more kids apply. People stress over grades, test scores, athletics, extracurriculars, community service, college essays, etc. (Back in 1935, this was good enough to get JFK into Harvard, though.) Personally, I remember applying to college and how frustrating and arbitrary admissions could seem- I got into BC and was waitlisted at Tufts, one of my friends from school got into Tufts and was waitlisted at BC, so who knows what those admissions officers were thinking- and how annoying it is that athletics can often override academics with admissions preferences.
Enter Rick Singer, an arrogant, sleazy college counselor offering to get kids into their dream schools through "the side door," once their parents paid hundreds of thousands of dollars supposedly to his charitable foundation but really as bribes to coaches, athletic directors, and people taking tests for kids. The guy sometimes got overconfident- in one particularly egregious move, he put on an application, without the family's consent, that a rich white girl was Black and a first-generation college student, and for that he got caught. But for the most part, he was savvy about what buttons to push. He sought out coaches and athletic departments he knew would take the money. In some cases, he flat-out lied and said a kid wasn't likely to get into their top-choice school without his help when that actually wasn't true. I do have some limited sympathy for the mothers he manipulated through mom-guilt.
Someone would have made this up if it hadn't really happened. And honestly, the line between what's legal and what's not sometimes seems arbitrary- like, how is it legal for children of big donors to get in when they couldn't on their own merits? Why is SO much weight put on athletics? Do parents really not get that you can succeed in life without going to your first-choice college? One parent, in his own defense, talked about how every parent knows how important it is to have a college counselor. And...no. Every parent does not know that, outside of your bubble, dude. And plenty of us manage to get into great colleges without spending zillions of dollars on schools and tutors and illegal bribes! I went to a pretty normal suburban public high school in Massachusetts. Three kids out of my class of 360-something went to Harvard. Several others got into other great schools. Arbitrary as the process can seem, you can get in by merit. And these parents robbed their kids of that feeling of merit by doubting their kids' abilities to get in on their own. (I feel terrible for the kids involved, none of whom were charged and most of whom had no idea what their parents were doing.)
Remind me again never to leave Massachusetts. Private school here is a complete waste of money.
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