In the sad history of the progressive conquest of American education, the first line of attack was hiring faculty who were enthusiastic about advancing leftist beliefs. More recently, admissions offices have prioritized students with a social-justice bent, or who might be open to one. In that effort, the student admission essay plays a key role since it can provide clues about student political orientation.

In today’s Martin Center article, Liza Libes argues that schools should use the essay to hunt for intellectual talent, not ideological conformity.

The American college-admissions essay was born in the early 1920s, when a growing demand for higher education prompted elite colleges such as Harvard and Yale to identify additional methods to screen incoming college........

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