SKIP TO CONTENT

legacy admission

/ˈlɛɡəsi ædˈmɪʃən/
IPA guide

Other forms: legacy admissions

A legacy admission happens when a student who applies to a college has a parent or grandparent who also went there, tells the college about it when they apply, and is accepted at that college partly due to that connection.

Some colleges prioritize legacy admissions because they want to build relationships with multiple generations of students within the same family. But legacy admissions can be a form of nepotism, which is when you give people advantages based on their relationship to you rather than their skills and abilities. They can also make it harder for students whose parents didn't get to go to college to be accepted. Because of this, legacy admissions are often criticized.

Definitions of legacy admission
  1. noun
    the practice of accepting someone to study at a college because their relative, usually a parent or grandparent, studied there
  2. noun
    someone accepted to study at a college because their relative, usually a parent or grandparent, studied there
Cite this entry
Style:
MLA
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago

Copy citation
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘legacy admission'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family