I believe Wash U uses the term "need-aware." It aggressively recruits based on "merit" at the cost of socioeconomic diversity. While I was attending, Wash U had the most National Merit Finalists, largely because those students get at bare minimum a $2k/yr scholarship for showing up.[1]
On the one hand, this has resulted in a significant increase in the standardized test performance of its student body [2]--and that has probably resulted in higher rankings overall. On the other hand, there's a simulated environment quality to being around people who are all so similarly well off. For example, every student from a 150k+ income family thinks of his/herself as middle class. Not much perspective.
I believe Wash U uses the term "need-aware." It aggressively recruits based on "merit" at the cost of socioeconomic diversity. While I was attending, Wash U had the most National Merit Finalists, largely because those students get at bare minimum a $2k/yr scholarship for showing up.[1]
On the one hand, this has resulted in a significant increase in the standardized test performance of its student body [2]--and that has probably resulted in higher rankings overall. On the other hand, there's a simulated environment quality to being around people who are all so similarly well off. For example, every student from a 150k+ income family thinks of his/herself as middle class. Not much perspective.
[1] http://www.nationalmerit.org/annual_report.pdf
[2] http://www.businessinsider.com/colleges-with-the-highest-sat...