And it doubly worries me as a mom whose 9 year-old son is scheduled for neuropyschological testing (i.e., Autism/Asperger’s). Unless things change radically in the next 8 years, he’ll be in big trouble, because even if his grades are OK, he shows every sign now of being unable to write a self-reflective essay of any kind, least of all a suck-up bullshitty one.

Anyway, this is an old post, so I’m hardly furthering a discussion, but right now my best hope is for him (and kids like him) to declare that the disability accomodation he requires is exemption from the essay requirement. Ha! Maybe that’s what every kid should do who butts up against the “well-roundedness” mantra.

In MIT’s case, the head of admissions was not merely not serious nor high achieving, but an actual fraud:

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/27/us/27mit.html?_r=1&em&ex=1177819200&en=bf6ba9ca0694746b&ei=5087

Marilee Jones, the dean of admissions at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, became well known for urging stressed-out students competing for elite colleges to calm down and stop trying to be perfect. Yesterday she admitted that she had fabricated her own educational credentials, and resigned after nearly three decades at M.I.T. Officials of the institute said she did not have even an undergraduate degree.

“I misrepresented my academic degrees when I first applied to M.I.T. 28 years ago and did not have the courage to correct my résumé when I applied for my current job or at any time since,” Ms. Jones said in a statement posted on the institute’s Web site. “I am deeply sorry for this and for disappointing so many in the M.I.T. community and beyond who supported me, believed in me, and who have given me extraordinary opportunities.”

Ms. Jones said that she would not make any other public comment “at this personally difficult time” and that she hoped her privacy would be respected.

Ms. Jones, 55, originally from Albany, had on various occasions represented herself as having degrees from three upstate New York institutions: Albany Medical College, Union College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In fact, she had no degrees from any of those places, or anywhere else, M.I.T. officials said.

“Mantella holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s of social work degree from Syracuse University, and a doctorate in educational administration from Michigan State University.”

Blast! Wish I could exchange my hard science degrees for Dr. Mantella’s.

My son, with killer SATs, long on personality, short on grades and teacher approval, could go to community college, but is going to Central European University in Budapest, instead. Why? He’s not a minority, he has no victim story, we’re not living in our car. He did a year in Hungary after being booted from his crunchy-granola high school (bad attitude) as an AFS student, then did a year at a California community college.

Would a US school take him? Maybe, but I doubt it.

Evidently, intelligence or even knowledge can’t be measured, but other stuff can.