The Inequality Machine: How College Divides Us

I read this book expecting to learn about issues with college admissions, inequality, and the struggle for the American Dream today. And it did deliver on all of that.But I also learned some things about myself, and that was totally unexpected. I was a first generation college student on a scholarship. Various challenges I faced along the way - both internal and external - that at the time I thought were just about me, or just random - I can now see the systemic machinations that were at play and ended up having profound influences on the way my life story has played out. I had no idea this book would be such an emotional read at a personal level.But it is indeed an emotional read - even if it is not as personally revelatory for you, you will find yourself caught up in the fortunes of the students he profiles and feeling hope, anger, despair, inspiration, frustration and heartache not just for individuals but for the way things are. Yet, remarkably, this emotional experience comes from a simple laying out of the landscape, teasing out the facts from the myths and misinformation, not just in numbers, but in people.

I've been in the education space for 20 years, and I've never come across a book that captures so many of the challenges and contradictions of the world of college admissions as does Paul Tough's new work.I had a hard time putting this book down. It offered a rich analysis of so many aspects of college admissions: from the delicate balance of building a diverse class while managing fiscal realities, to the challenge of fairly assessing students using flawed instruments, to the politics of race, class and privilege. Tough is a structural thinker, a systems thinker. He expands the lens from what seems to be an individual student choice of where to go to college to the larger forces that are dictating where individual students apply, where they get in, and the experiences they will have once they arrive at college. Tough takes a critical eye towards many of the claims made by colleges and universities and the testing giants who give us the SAT and ACT.More than this, I was so drawn in to the highly personal and moving stories of students navigating this world of higher education. I wanted to find out what happened to Kiki and Kim and the students Tough profiled. Through his intimate conversations, Tough brought us into the lives and worlds of these young people.Such a combination of empathic narrative and thoughtful analysis is so rare to find in one book.I've already been recommending this book to friends and colleagues and plan to share it with anyone interested in the college admissions world.

I was a college counselor for several years, and this book was completely eye-opening for me... which hopefully means it will be even more surprising for students and parents. It shows the ins and outs, the motivations, the economic realities that college-admissions teams face as they try to choose students who will allow the schools to thrive financially--shown by the author to be very difficult these days--while also enrolling solid students. It also elaborates on the significant (and sometimes crippling) struggles that minority and/or financially-strapped students face after they enroll. The reliance of almost all colleges and universities on affluent students, and the sometimes desperate means by which those students are sought, are a little dispiriting but also understandable. If you're getting ready to apply to college or have a child who is, this book should be a must-read. It's fascinating, easy to read, and full of characters whom you'll meet and root for.

A college education can make a big difference in one’s quality of life, especially from a financial perspective. Statistics show that those with a bachelor’s degree make significantly more per year than those who do not have a degree, so it makes sense to pursue a degree if financial comfort is the goal. Many Americans, however, do not have access to a university degree either due to lack of funds, a subpar high school education, or countless other reasons. In contrast, other people seem to have no problem gaining admission to the best schools and continuing the life of prosperity they have grown to know and expect. This unequal distribution of opportunity forms the basis of this book, The Years that Matter Most: How College Makes or Breaks Us.This book discusses some of the reasons why a quality higher education and the benefits one reaps from such an education, seem to be completely out of reach for so many Americans. The book includes stories of actual students who have struggled at some level as they attempted to gain admission to the university of their choosing, fit in socially with other well-off co-eds, and catch up academically to other students, many of whom went to the best prep schools, attended elite high schools, and had the best guidance along the way, far improving their chances for success in school, and in life.Several key arguments are presented in this book, and they get you thinking about things as they presently stand and whether the status quo needs rethinking. One is standardized tests like the SAT and ACT. In the past, a high standardized test score was essential to apply to most any university, but today, more and more colleges are making standardized tests optional. Another discussion point is the commonly held view that working hard and doing the right thing will lead to success, even though evidence shows this is not necessarily the case. Another core position that this book takes is the idea that young people can learn and achieve most anything with the correct approach and guidance; that there is no such thing as being naturally more gifted or smarter. It’s a matter of having the right opportunities while young and having access to the tools, technology, tutoring, quality teachers, and other things necessary to properly prepare a young person for the future.I like the personal stories presented in this book. They go far in illustrating the book’s key points and many who read may find a story they can personally relate to. As for the book’s main arguments, I agree that standardized tests- and for that matter tests in general- should be scaled back. As a university teacher myself, I have never been a fan of tests and I agree that we are far too reliant on test scores as an indicator of potential success. I can also agree that, when selecting a university, the prestige and ranking of the school does make a difference. It isn’t because the education or the professors are superior, it is more because prestigious employers assume that anyone admitted to these universities is likely to be highly motivated, extremely well disciplined, well organized, etc.One unexpected surprise as I read this book was the mention of the Texas college admissions model. Under the Texas system, any Texas high school graduate who finishes in the top ten percent of their class is automatically accepted to any public university in the state. Of course, all high schools are not created equally and finishing in the top ten percent in some high schools is certainly easier than at other high schools. But this approach at least gives hard- working, determined students a chance for admission to a prestigious school. I appreciate that the book makes mention of the Texas model as a possible way to break down the barriers that underprivileged kids face when they try to improve their education and prepare for their future.I can agree with much of what this book says, but one issue I have with it is that it seems to think that the underclasses rightfully deserve a shot at the most elite universities in the land. Is this really necessary or practical? Do the economically disadvantaged need to make that great of a leap? When I enrolled in college, I didn’t expect to gain admission to Yale or Princeton. I came from extremely modest means, and I was content to get accepted to a school that didn’t rank in the top tier of all universities. I was perfectly fine with this- I didn’t expect to make the jump all the way to the top. And guess what? I still improved my financial condition and moved up the economic ladder. I didn’t vault all the way to the top, but I did improve my social and economic class standing. It’s also not practical to think that everyone can gain acceptance to an Ivy league university. There is only so much space for new students.Going to college and earning a university degree does make a difference and the data back this up. The barriers to university admission are especially difficult to the economically disadvantaged and this book spells out several of the problems with higher education, for all to see. Some of the conclusions are debatable, but there is no doubt that life is easiest and prestigious education is most attainable for those who are wealthy. This book gets you thinking about these inequalities and it’s a very good read for those who want to know more about college admissions and the difficulties faced by those in the lower economic classes.

Paul Tough's excellent book offers some reminders about the benefits and challenges of modern higher education, especially as it manifests in the more commercial environment of the United States. He contrasts the notion of HE as once thought of as a public good to the present manifestation of it as a personal investment. This shift is what gives the elites a range of advantages, from entrance preparation underwritten by parental resources to ability to pay once the costs have been pushed onto the individual, to the savvy application to the most selective school that will take you. All the while, Tough records the energy and enthusiasm within the sector for better and more equal outcomes, and the dismal results that mostly accompany it, pushing large loans onto poor people who are often the least likely to graduate at all, a dire outcome given there is no real advantage to them without a degree. As Tough notes, equity and inclusion is really pointless as long as the privileges of HE at the best institutions are dominated by SAT or ACT scores (giving an advantage to the academically talentless wealthy, and punishing the able poor). The more pressing issue is what to do about life outcomes for those without a degree or whose aspirations to have one have been poisoned by fear of the cost or duplicitous politicians (with degrees) looking for ways out of creating fairness in an increasingly unfair and divided society by belittling college as an experience.Tough builds his case from the data, and the College Board certainly comes in for a beating, but enhances it with individual stories that make sense of the patterns he is describing. There are some helpful insights into behaviours as well: those smart, rich students gathering around asking questions after the lecture are playing the system. Those polite, shy poor kids think this is cheating and won't do it, so it is time for all lecturers to think about who they are talking to, when and for how long (and how often). Issues of confidence and belonging also feature prominently, reminding the reader that ability will wither in those without the support necessary to see themselves succeeding. This might be more an American thing, given this is a national ideology, and Tough's book shows that most of their national stories (about hard work, fairness, tolerance or equal opportunity) look more like a ruse to justify leveraging the advantages of the wealthy. In this it has much in common with analyses of other aspects of American Life (see Daniel Markovits' 'The Meritocracy Trap'), but these structural unfairnesses are just as prevalent in the UK and likely to increase noting the rhetoric of UK politicians and the deliberate dismantling of progressive aspects of the UK's HE sector. Time to resist.