With college admissions becoming more competitive than ever, some universities are doing whatever it takes to learn about its prospective students — including random accuracy checks on applications.
The University of California Board of Regents at the University of California at Berkeley recently decided to enact a comprehensive review that examines applicant extracurricular activities to aid admissions.
“(This) policy sends a strong signal that UC is looking for students who have achieved at high levels and, in doing so, have challenged themselves to the greatest extent possible,” said Richard Atkinson, president of the University of California system.
Recent supplements to the review policy will allow admission officers from the University of California system to “spot-check” applicants’ activities and personal obstacles to ensure they are factually accurate.
“I am concerned with the veracity and reliability of the system. How do you verify hardships?” Regent Ward Connerly said to support the supplement to the policy imposed last year.
The intent of the policy is to verify those hardships, as well as applicants’ activities — but NU’s Admission Office does not plan to follow the example anytime soon.
“I don’t think we’ll change our policy in the near future,” said Associate Provost of University Admissions Rebecca Dixon. “If suddenly every highly selective college in the country starts spot-checking, then students might get the idea that they could pull a fast one on NU. Then, we’d have to rethink our position. But I think this possibility is so improbable that it isn’t worth spending time to speculate.”
While NU does not intend to adopt the procedure, Dixon says NU’s admission officers can still make correct assessments.
“Lest you think NU’s Admission Office believes that every piece of information in every application is 100 percent factually accurate, be assured that the staff are very experienced people and are attune to inconsistencies in applications that suggest falsification,” Dixon said. “However, (the Office of Admission) operates in an environment of trust and respect for our applicants. We will not do spot-checking.”
Though Hanan Eisenman, a public relations representative for the University of California schools, is unsure what percentage of applications would undergo review, one perspective student said the review is beneficial but impractical.
“It is a lack of trust by Berkeley, but it is wholly justified,” Barton said. “Although I like the fact that applications are being checked, it still does not make me feel much more secure, seeing that most everyone understands that the odds of the school checking any one person’s application is very small.”
Applicants to the University of California system don’t seem to mind. One student said she thinks the new policy will be a good safeguard against fraudulent information.
“I think it’s a really good idea because I think that a lot of people kind of exaggerate extracurriculars in their applications. Applicants tend to think it is OK to put false information on their applications … information that will go unchecked,” said Becky Fogel, a high school senior applying to Berkeley.
