[Michael Blake]

Originally Posted by Siri

FIRST isn't making that correlation; you are. Unless FIRST ever told you that meeting some benchmark and making the List would guarantee admission, all I've seen them do is correlate Dean's List with more interest from admissions officers. Dean's talked to many, and they say are particularly interested in these students. Truthful and transparent.

Correlating this extra interest from admissions officers with admission to the university is where the logic falls apart, but that's your logic, not FIRST's. In fact, Dean hasn't even promised it'd increase probabilities...

Siri... JUST watch the darn video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature..._Wu_E#t=88 1s

... and put yourself in the place of a SEVENTEEN year old and his parents shooting for an M.I.T. education for FOUR years with the early conclusion that it's a "crapshoot". And then hearing the words at the ceremony and thinking, Holy Cow... this is REAL!

Causing us to expend time/effort/interactions/loads-of-$$$ where we would not have for a "crapshoot".

But, you know what, my experience is it's "a bunch of baloney". I'm sorry, but it's true.

--Michael