Brown University, located in Providence, Rhode Island, is one of the eight Ivy League schools and the 7th oldest institution of higher education in the US. They’re known for having a totally open curriculum – that’s right – no core classes. Brown is perfect for students who have a variety of interests or an interesting intersection of interests and want a place to explore those interests freely. But, if you’re here, you probably knew all this, because one (or both!) of your parents went to Brown and now you want to go to Brown too.
Legacy admissions on the whole has been undergoing changes and heightened scrutiny over the years, but it still exists at Brown. Let’s talk about what you can do to increase your chances at Brown as a legacy student and stand out among the crowd.
What’s up with Legacy Admissions?
Like affirmative action, legacy admissions is also seeing increased attention from the general public. According to Forbes, colleges using legacy admissions have dropped by half over the last decade, and a few states, like Colorado, California, Illinois, Maryland, and Virginia have passed bans or restrictions on the practice in the past few years.
However, at most top schools, legacy is still a factor in admissions. At some schools, like Notre Dame, Duke, and Georgetown, legacy is a stated huge deal. At others, like Wesleyan, it’s not even considered. The Ivy League fits somewhere in the middle, with most schools choosing to hold their legacy info and data close to the chest.
Brown is interesting because in 2023, they decided to form a committee to determine if they should make changes to Early Decision, testing policies, and legacy admissions. Previously, Brown said this about legacy:
“The consideration of legacy status is a very, very small consideration compared to other attributes... We don’t admit students based on categories, we don’t release application and acceptance data in a way that suggests we do."
The committee came back in 2024 and decided on a few things: Early Decision will remain, testing will become mandatory for the class of 2029, and the legacy policy won’t change “while Brown continues to consider a range of complex questions raised by the committee and seeks more input from its community.” In the post, Brown states that the Class of 2027 is made up of 8% legacy students, and we know that there are right around 1700 students in the Class of 2027. To put that in even plainer numbers, Brown’s Class of 2027 allegedly has 135 legacy students.
What Can You Do?
Let’s debunk a popular myth about legacy – it’s not for the failsons of wealth alums. Legacy students who are admitted to top schools like Brown still have to meet all the same benchmarks as their non-legacy counterparts. You still need killer grades and scores and those great, niche extracurriculars that can help you stand out.
Grades
We work with legacies every year, and they almost always have 4.0s. Legacy students typically come from privileged backgrounds, which means things like private school, tutors, and investments in education go right along with that. In order to compete against the 50k+ applicants to Brown, you need to be getting the best grades in the hardest classes your school has to offer. This is non-negotiable!
Scores
Now that Brown has brought back testing for the Class of 2029, it’s more important than ever. Dartmouth and Yale ended test-optional last year, and the primary reason they cited was that students who did not submit scores performed worse than their test-submitting counterparts and that they believed that testing was the best indicator of college success. Where one Ivy goes, they typically all go. We always encourage submitting scores for our students, especially the legacies, so our approach hasn’t changed. The vast majority of admitted students for the Class of 2028 got higher than a 1500 or a 35 on their standardized tests, which means you should too.
Extracurriculars
It’s not enough to just join a few clubs and be captain of the soccer team – you need to show Brown depth. As a legacy student, Brown knows you’re connected, and if you just throw them a generic resume, you’re not going to stand out. If you tell them you’re interested in studying poetry and there’s nothing you’ve done outside of school to prove you’re interested in poetry, they won't be convinced. This goes for every major – from comp sci to bio to history. We like to start working with legacy students as early as freshman year to help them build and craft a resume that shows they have a passion and have done the work to make it a reality.
Apply Early
If you’re serious about Brown, especially as a legacy student, you need to apply early. If you don’t apply early as a legacy student, it doesn’t show that you have a true, vested interest in the school. If you submit regular decision, they may assume you’re trying to leverage your legacy status after a failed ED attempt to one of their peer institutions. It’s also smarter to do in general – while Brown’s acceptance rate overall is 5%, they accept about 13% in early decision. The best way to really convince them that you want this is by applying early.
Stay Involved
Parents, this one is for you. If you are serious about sending your child to your alma mater, you need to show Brown you’re serious about them. Our most successful legacy clients are not just the ones who have students with excellent credentials – they’re the ones who are active participants in their alumni communities. This may look like conducting interviews for admissions, assisting with fundraising, being on an alumni board, or a combination of these things and more. We encourage you to reach out to us to talk about the best strategy for your family.
If you’re a Brown legacy and you’re serious about going there, you need to make sure you have a stellar application. You need great grades, scores, and extracurriculars – you don’t want to give them a single reason to turn you down!
If you need help crafting an application that helps you stand out among the crowd, reach out to us today. We can help.