Family Wealth Factors for Colleges Applicants

In certain cases, family wealth of applicants is considered, based on potential to make a substantial donation to the school (above and beyond paying tuition, and separate from considerations such as ability or fame). Such candidates are known as development cases, and are intended to bolster the finances of the university, especially to its further mission. The practice is not widely discussed by universities that use it, but is reported to be used by a number of top-ranked schools, Ivy League and otherwise, and has been associated with Duke University (which acknowledges its use) and Brown University (which does not comment), especially since the 1980s.