It’s a well-known fact that, since Princeton made the decision to prioritize “need-blind admissions” and “student financial aid”, its value as a prestigious institution of future leaders has diminished. Before, in its glory days, an A in Princeton meant a lot. It showed that the student had the intelligence, stamina, and the economic status to succeed in the tough job markets of the past and present. Even students with mediocre grades could go on to be extremely successful, getting high-paying jobs which allow them to contribute even more milliones to their family’s wealth funds. During these times, grades meant something. They meant years of private school education, and the generous donations of my parents were worth every penny.
Now comes 2020, where everything has a feel-good participation trophy and day by day the importance of this establishment is fading into the great darkness of equal opportunity for all. With record-breaking increases in levels of unemployment, great financial pressures for many, and general instability, the COVID-19 crisis may represent the death knell for the value of privilege on college campuses if we are not careful. The university must not forget that among many who are going through the traumatizing experiences of returning home amidst a global pandemic, there are also ones who are facing the traumatizing prospect of a term where their financial standing creates less of an academic advantage than usual.
“The idea of a universal pass is ridiculous.”, says junior Nicholas Julinksy Jr. in a Zoom call from his family’s second home in the Hamptons, “This term is the perfect opportunity for me to make the final push towards law school while my peers struggle to find stability at home. The difference between a 3.8 and a 3.9 could really make or break my application to Harvard Law — especially since this virus has delayed construction on the family library that was meant to open there next year.”
It is voices like these which are silenced by dramaticized stories of ‘marginalized’ students coming from low-income backgrounds, toxic home environments, or any other excuse to get out of responsibility. After all — isn’t a time of all-encompassing anxiety about the health and economic situation of your family the perfect opportunity to prove your merit? Sacrificing your physical and mental wellbeing is a great way to show that you have what it takes to work at a top company. Show that you are ready to endure the abusive worker conditions without complaint, and maybe you can get that big finance job you have been dreaming of for years!
The University must realize all this and now more than ever, stick to its values in the face of adversity. Universal pass threatens to destroy the culture of elitism which is essential to the legacy it has cultivated as a perfect privilege-perpetuation machine.
— GA ’22
