How the college admissions process became so corrupt

The world now knows: It is very possible to buy your way into the Ivy League. As The New York Times reports, prosecutors this week revealed that dozens of film stars, business executives, and other wealthy individuals had paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to gain college admission for their children — often without their knowledge — using fraudulent test scores and false claims to athletic ability. It's a perfect scandal for our era of helicopter parenting and ruthless competition for a coveted brass ring.

That the college admissions process is not strictly meritocratic should probably come as no shock.