Date: Fri, 20 Jun 1997 14:07:19 -0500 (CDT)
From: "Dave Alan Coon (:" <dcoon@ksu.edu>
To: Graduate Students International Sociology <socgrad@csf.colorado.edu>
Subject: IVY League Class Reproduction
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.91.970620135205.3313C-100000@cbs.ksu.ksu.edu>
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MY father, uncle and grandfather, even my great grandfather, all hold 
degrees from Cornell University (Ithaca, NY). I have been told by 
sociology textbooks that IVY LEAGUE schools contribute to class 
reproduction. While this is certainly true to some extent,(it was in my 
family), I wonder if this still holds true. My parents, both 
professionals, (my mom has a Masters Degree +30hrs, my Dad a PhD) saved 
for my sister and I to go to college since before we were born, yet they 
could not afford to send us to college at IVY LEAGUE Schools, and the 
educational system in Louisiana where I was raised (My dad grew up on 
Long Island, NY with a good educational system), simply did not offer any 
of the necessary courses required to get into Harvard, my school had 
trouble keeping up with the minimum entrance requirements to LSU, much 
less Harvard,. No 3rd year of foreign language was even offered one year.
And much of my college savings were wasted on car insurance my dad says. 
For me to get LIABILITY ONLY coverage with Straight A student 
discount and Driver's ed discount and a perfect driving record cost 
over $3,000/year in Louisiana driving a Ford Taurus that was not even 
worth half that amount. Isn't it true that IVY Leagues give preference to 
the children of ALUMNI? I was told the Cornell PhD program in sociology 
only accepted people with a batchelors not a Masters, is this true? Does 
having alumni parents from one IVY League School help one's chances of 
acceptance into another IVY LEAGUE school.  It is just not fair that I 
can't go to an IVY LEAGUE SCHOOL because my Dad made the stupid mistake 
of moving to Louisiana 27years ago (long before I was even born). 
Louisiana now has the highest poverty rate, 2nd highest incarceration 
rate (after Texas), highest teen pregnancy rate, highest illiteracy rate....
the Lowest number of internet computers in public schools....


What are my chances of getting into a PhD Program at a prestigious 
university? Are there any such chances? My  GRE is low because I took it 
while my grandmother is dying. Do they take the highest GRE Score,? I 
thought they considered them both. Is there any hope for me to get into a 
PhD program at an Ivy League School, even if I have to use student loans 
to pay for it?

Is there anyone else out there who has parents with more prestigious 
degrees than they themselves have? I know of only one other person in the 
same shoes as I, with a father from Cornell and a degree from a no-name 
university.

Sincerely,

David Coon 
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~dcoon 
MA Student & Graduate Teaching Asst.
Dept. of Sociology, Anthropology, & Social Work  http://www.ksu.edu/sasw/
Kansas State University