John F. Kennedy School of Government Harvard University Faculty Research Working Papers Series What Worms for the Early Bird: Early Admissions at Elite Colleges Christopher Avery, Andrew Fairbanks and Richard Zeckhauser August 2001 RWP01-049 The views expressed in the KSG Faculty Research Working Paper Series are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the John F. Kennedy School of Government or Harvard University. All works posted here are owned and copyrighted by the author(s). Papers may be downloaded for personal use only. What Worms for the Early Bird: Early Admissions at Elite Colleges Written for Presentation at the NACAC Conference October, 2000 Revised, Summer 2001 Christopher Avery, Andrew Fairbanks and Richard Zeckhauser Author Information: Christopher Avery, Associate Professor of Public Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. e-mail:
[email protected] Andrew Fairbanks, Higher Education Consultant, Price Waterhouse Coopers, and former Associate Dean of Admissions, Wesleyan University. e-mail:
[email protected] Richard Zeckhauser: Frank Plumpton Ramsey Professor of Public Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University. e-mail:
[email protected] NOTE: This report is a brief summary of a larger study to be published as a book by Harvard University Press. I. Introduction While the admission process has been placed under ever increasing scrutiny in recent years, this rite of passage for high school seniors continues to be shrouded in mystery. Institutions publish numerous statistics, including average SAT’s, percentage of students in the top 10% of the class, selectivity, and yield, but parents, students, and guidance counselors continue to encounter significant uncertainty when engaging in the admission process.