I'm not so sure that there is an "edge" for upper middle class, gifted students in the college admissions process. My neighbor's daughter just graduated from Exeter, at the top of her class with nearly perfect SAT scores. She did not get in to the Ivy that her mom attended. In fact, she did not get into a number of lower tier schools, dispute her amazing resume, grades and track record. I've heard similar stories of disappointment.
I'm not sure what the issue is. More foreign applicants? More applicants overall so that the schools could accept a qualified freshman class 10 times over? No interest in a science and math focused brilliant white middle class girl? Not enough top notch colleges? Unrealistic expectations?
It feels that the process is broken. It irks me that the College board has so much power and influence. It feels like a waste of resources to spend time and money on SAT prep. I hate the idea that a student should apply to 8-10 schools considering the time and $$ that it takes. Spending money on essay consultation is another resource zapper. It seems as if the process does not favor anyone, expect maybe the college application/consulting/testing industry.
