The 2019 Varsity Blues scandal exposed just how far rich, famous and entitled parents would go to get their kids into big name colleges.

But the truth is there are many ways colleges already give preferences to wealthy students. And they are completely legal.

GBH’s Kirk Carapezza and Jon Marcus of the Hechinger Report dig into how college admissions favor students who can pay giant tuition bills out of pocket. And this happens even as the U.S. Supreme Court withdraws affirmative action advantages benefiting low-income students of color.

In this episode, we explain how early decision benefits wealthy students who can afford to commit to a college before seeing a financial aid offer.

And explore the world of private college advising. You’ll hear from elite coaches and experts to find out why college coaching is needed in the first place.

“College Uncovered” is made possible by Lumina Foundation.

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Credits:

Hosts: Kirk Carapezza & Jon Marcus

Supervising Editor: Megan Woolhouse

Editor: Jeff Keating

Executive Producer: Ellen London

Mixing and Sound Design: David Goodman & Gary Mott

Theme Song and original music: Left-Roman

Artwork: Matt Welch

Project Manager: Meiqian He

Consulting Producer and Head of GBH Podcasts: Devin Maverick Robins

"College Uncovered" is a production of GBH News and The Hechinger Report.