Once Secret, Harvard's Admissions Process is Unveiled in Federal Court

"I've definitely not revealed the secret of Coke," said Mr. Lee, who represents the company in a patent against Samsung. But, he acknowledged, "you're learning a lot about the admissions process that would never have been public otherwise. We want you to know. Once you understand it, you can understand how decisions are made. "

Some, but not all, of the secrets have buttressed Harvard's elite reputation.

It casts a wide net for students, aggressively recruiting those in "sparse country," predominantly rural areas that yield few applications. It is a question of dizzying array of factors, from SAT scores to athletic ability to interviews (be "effervescent," "fun," goal "mature") and more. A lack of deep pockets will not hinder a hopeful and might even help one's chances,

But there are other disclosures that are relatively arbitrary.

There is the special list for those whom the admissions dean has taken an interest in, some of whom are the relative of wealthy donors. There is the wave "personal" rating, which can lift or hurt an applicant's chances based on an assessment of character traits and background, from "outstanding" to "bland or somewhat negative or immature" to "questionable personal qualities." And the trial This week has raised the issue of unconscious bias affecting the process.

More important than numerical ratings – Harvard uses a scale of 1 (top of the heap) to 6 (no chance) to measure the many aspects of a student's profile Mr. Fitzsimmons said this week in testimony.

A rare look inside a student's admissions this week has shined a light on what that means. Harvard referred to the Courts of Justice of the United States Q. Diep (Harvard Class of 2019), who had only middling test scores but was admitted to the college by a strong work ethic and "infectiously happy personality," as his admissions file says. Mr. Diep, who was born in Vietnam, submitted to his report in Harvard fight charges of discrimination.

"Mr. Fitzsimmons said," This is a person who has been in the fourth grade and is not his first language.

Mr. Fitzsimmons quoted an admissions interviewer saying that he was most striking about Mr. Diep was "his fun, casual nature, impressive goal, understated maturity."