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Why Did Rutgers Have to Rutgers?

e5fdny

e5fdny

Heisman
Nov 11, 2002
114,970
54,270
102
RU206 said:
You can get it from them now and later. If the football team goes 12-0 and makes it to the B1G championship game and the college football playoffs all of a sudden the donations will sky rocket and the interest in the school will increase from current and former students. Just look at Indiana. 500% increase once they started winning. Or look at Saint Peter’s when the basketball team made the NCAA basketball run a few year back. Donations increased.

Kids go to Penn St, Clemson or Auburn for that atmosphere. They are not better academic schools. Michigan is in a different animals. It’s a top academic school.
RU could try recruiting students of wealthy family’s for future donations but it would be easier to recruit better football players and win more games.
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Those of a certain age will remember the article in the New York Times about Indiana.

I’m trying to remember or recall if it was when Bobby Knight was still there or just left.

But what I do remember was that the article barely touched on athletics. It mentioned it, but it wasn’t any part of a focus.

What it did mention was all the things that we’re trying to have happen here, without or regardless of athletic success.…

- connection, a great undergraduate experience, pretty campus, a welcoming college town environment - how Bloomington and Indiana really get along. Another thing briefly mentioned was the membership in the Big Ten, “the company you keep” angle. Which is when the article was written, another part I can’t recall, if it was before State Penn join the Big Ten.

And considering this was the New York Times, the data showed afterwards in a follow up an increase in applications from all the nice places we know in New Jersey and out on Long Island.
 
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Caliknight

Caliknight

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Fat Koko said:
One overlooked factor driving the make up of the Rutgers student demographics is community college transfers.

Rutgers does not publish statistics on this but UCLA - the top ranked public school in the B1G - provides details on applicants from community colleges.

Last year, UCLA admitted nearly 6,000 students from more than 100 California community colleges. Here is the list. The numbers at Rutgers are different but the trend is likely the same.

This is not just a lefty state thing. About 20% of freshman at the US Naval Academy enter from the Naval Academy Prep School, a type of junior college for the USNA. I grew up playing ball with the NAPS guys every summer. Very diverse group.
Click to expand...
NAPS is hardly a junior college. It’s much more prep school for the academy specifically.
 
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Caliknight

Caliknight

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RU206 said:
You can get it from them now and later. If the football team goes 12-0 and makes it to the B1G championship game and the college football playoffs all of a sudden the donations will sky rocket and the interest in the school will increase from current and former students. Just look at Indiana. 500% increase once they started winning. Or look at Saint Peter’s when the basketball team made the NCAA basketball run a few year back. Donations increased.

Kids go to Penn St, Clemson or Auburn for that atmosphere. They are not better academic schools. Michigan is in a different animals. It’s a top academic school.
RU could try recruiting students of wealthy family’s for future donations but it would be easier to recruit better football players and win more games.
Click to expand...
Having money and being a legacy is viewed as a negative at Rutgers.
 
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RUnTeX

RUnTeX

All-Conference
Dec 21, 2001
7,120
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RUDiddy777 said:
ifs always been like that. Im more than 2 decades removed, even if I wasn’t poor then, why would I spend an extra 150k to get the same degree from a school that’s 20 spots higher in the US news ranking?
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For that matter, possibly 20 spots or more lower too in some cases. Just because there's a perceived cache with going further away/OOS which many 18yo (and sometimes their parents) find difficult to resist.
 
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RUnTeX

RUnTeX

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Dec 21, 2001
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T2Kplus20 said:
One thing to point out, remember, it’s not about overall demographics of the state. It’s essentially the demographics of school age kids that should be the comparison. This can be way different than the overall/adult population.

And yes, merit is merit. Let the results fall where they may!
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School age, particularly college bound, population likely to be better representative than the general population.

On the merit argument, I think it would result in student bodies tilting even further toward Asian/South Asian Americans. Still considered over-represented in higher education, more than any other ethnic/racial group, particularly at the more competitive and highly selective schools.

Interestingly enough is that plenty of Asian Americans don't necessarily want to go where there are perceived to be so many already. While some find that to be an appealing quality others are not so keen about that.

Knight Shift said:
Wondering why that would actually matter to anyone, particularly for anyone in science or engineering.
Click to expand...

Maybe they're afraid of the competition 😂 (especially if they're interested in going STEM or business)

EddieWilsonLives said:
My daughter has two friends whose parents both told me their girls (both smart kids) ruled out Rutgers because of the high Indian and Asian presence.
Click to expand...

Per my observation above, it wouldn't shock me if the punch line here was that the two friends are Asian or Indian themselves 😜
 
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A

Anon1764435409

Redshirt
Nov 29, 2025
7
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Section124 said:
Your sister was not an RN when she graduated County College. She was maybe a med tech/assistant and used them for undergraduate tuition. Very smart. There are different ways to get the degree.
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Nobody is a RN when they graduate, either with associate or bachelor level educations..... until they pass their state licensing boards.
 
R

RUDiddy777

Heisman
Feb 26, 2015
33,803
38,258
113
EddieWilsonLives said:
My daughter has two friends whose parents both told me their girls (both smart kids) ruled out Rutgers because of the high Indian and Asian presence.
Click to expand...

Top 10 Misinformation GIF
 
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redlinehw

All-Conference
Sep 27, 2004
2,296
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-RUFAN4LIFE- said:
Backstory - Rutgers, despite it's good education, is not favorably looked upon in my area of Bergen County. The kids treat it like it's a school for lepers. So convincing one of my children to take a campus visit specifically for their major was a bit of a win.

(start of rant)

The :poop: show pretty much started immediately. During the registration process, Rutgers asked for almost no information like the dozen other college tours we've taken. After it was completed, Rutgers was the only school not to provide any parking information. For me, that wouldn't have been a big deal but I wasn't able to be there so it was a big deal for my wife and kid who were unfamiliar with New Brunswick and all the current construction didn't help matters.

When they arrived there wasn't a single person from Admissions or the Nursing school there. An alumni, likely in his 40s, was doing the information session. This immediately raised a red flag based on all the prior tours both general and degree specific that we've been on. This person couldn't answer half the questions, admitted he hadn't been around campus much since graduation and then proceeded to provide bad information like telling a family that Early Action and Early Decision were the same thing. IYKYK that is the furthest thing from the truth as the latter locks you in immediately to the school. He also told the group that they admitted 700-800 students last year even though he stated there were only 350 spots in the program each year.

On top of it all, they could not see the labs that they would be spending a lot of time in due to renovations. Why have an information session for the program without being able to show a key piece of the program? To boot, they were told that the program had relocated to two floors in the office building they were in (not an RU building) for the foreseeable future without much reason given even though there is a Nursing hall on campus, which they also did not see.

So Rutgers basically shot themselves in the foot in terms of any real interest now after I worked so hard to get my kid to give them a chance. Why Rutgers Why !@?#*

(Rant over)
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I have 2 degrees from Rutgers and my wife also has a degree from Rutgers. I have a bias towards Rutgers.

Years ago my kid was a high achiever in HS and was accepted with scholarship to the first Rutgers Honors college class.

My kid went with my wife to the Honors College accepted students day presentation with a bunch of other high achievers:

- They were told by Rutgers to park in a specific area but everyone that parked there found a parking ticket from Rutgers Police waiting on their car after the presentation
-During the presentation the Rutgers speaker told them about the brand new Honors College housing but didn’t show them an actual dorm room, a rendering, or model of the dorms.
-During the presentation one of the Rutgers Deans fell asleep on stage while waiting their turn to speak to the students

We promptly eliminated Rutgers.
 
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Fat Koko

Fat Koko

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redlinehw said:
I have 2 degrees from Rutgers and my wife also has a degree from Rutgers. I have a bias towards Rutgers.

Years ago my kid was a high achiever in HS and was accepted with scholarship to the first Rutgers Honors college class.

My kid went with my wife to the Honors College accepted students day presentation with a bunch of other high achievers:

- They were told by Rutgers to park in a specific area but everyone that parked there found a parking ticket from Rutgers Police waiting on their car after the presentation
-During the presentation the Rutgers speaker told them about the brand new Honors College housing but didn’t show them an actual dorm room, a rendering, or model of the dorms.
-During the presentation one of the Rutgers Deans fell asleep on stage while waiting their turn to speak to the students

We promptly eliminated Rutgers.
Click to expand...
You got Rutgersed.
 
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JL23

Junior
Oct 4, 2005
873
325
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Bottom line is unless the kid is laser focused on an area of study and doesn't really care about sports, or is tied into staying around the area for family / relationship reasons, and if the money out of pocket is similar (and that doesn't take into account the amount of kids that don't have to take out loans b/c parents are wealthy or grandparents paid for school), Rutgers will always be at a distinct disadvantage vis a vis big time southern football schools

It's not a slight on Rutgers - but it's a fact

Decades of athletic mediocrity, combined w/constantly screwing people every way imaginable, negating things that could have helped (The Alley), while having police run amok for no reason other than money (Middlesex County police handing out underage tickets like candy) has all contributed to kids wanting another option when it comes down to school choice
 
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Caliknight

Caliknight

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Sep 21, 2001
197,320
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RUDiddy777 said:
According to your own posts about Asians being overrepresented relative to the population, they don’t.
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Imported Asians are being over represented because they pay full freight. American minorities are getting special dispensation at Rutgers due to skin color.
 
S

S_Janowski

Heisman
May 24, 2009
14,069
26,785
113
Caliknight said:
Merit or not they run Wall St.
Click to expand...

So according to your logic, Merit matters when we’re talking about college acceptance for non-whites. No ship ins allowed.

But, Merit doesn’t matter when we’re talking about all the white Lax Bros getting a golden segway into Wall Street.

If you claim to be a “Merit guy” then you have to be consistent haha.
 
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M

mdk02

Heisman
Aug 18, 2011
26,894
19,177
113
S_Janowski said:
So according to your logic, Merit matters when we’re talking about college acceptance for non-whites. No ship ins allowed.

But, Merit doesn’t matter when we’re talking about all the white Lax Bros getting a golden segway into Wall Street.

If you claim to be a “Merit guy” then you have to be consistent haha.
Click to expand...
Please see my post 166.
 
Caliknight

Caliknight

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S_Janowski said:
So according to your logic, Merit matters when we’re talking about college acceptance for non-whites. No ship ins allowed.

But, Merit doesn’t matter when we’re talking about all the white Lax Bros getting a golden segway into Wall Street.

If you claim to be a “Merit guy” then you have to be consistent haha.
Click to expand...
I never said that. I simply stated a fact. I’m unaware of this non merit thing you speak of. Every kid I know that got a degree from a great school and job on wall st worked their asses off. The “lax bros” did so while playing a D1 sport. Two huge advantages for any employer hiring. They simply offer more.
 
S

ScarletKid2008

Heisman
Sep 8, 2006
8,050
10,567
113
RUskoolie said:
I would immediately start with prioritizing greek life instead of trying to kill it like cock roaches.
Second right behind it would be to cut all the woke nonsense. It alienaties 40-50% of your customer base
Third would be to collaborate hard with the city of New Brunswick on changing the zoning in the off campus neighborhood to greatly incentivize private landlords to bulldoze and build new housing (I am actively working on this)
Fifth would be to dial down the diversity push (yes its important, but its to the point you have to go looking for a white person in their magazine, social media posts or on campus).

They're not doing much to attract the upper middle class white kid from Madison whose parents make 300k a year and want their daughter at a 5 million dollar sorority house so they cut a check for double the price and send her to Auburn or Clemson or Penn State.
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I've been involved with Rutgers from many angles in my 18 years since graduation including serving on board of alumni, fundraising for multiple departments, mentorships, etc. Most of the points you've made in here are exactly what needs to be done. And it ain't hard, but its a mindset and culture shift. And I just can't get , after all the admin and prez turnovers , who is keeping the old mindset lingering.

Ultimately its the brand and perception of RU that needs to change in addition to your points of them getting in their own way.

1. .... college ave campus needs to complete its master plan & beautification ASAP ... like with urgency that it means life or death for the university. Expensive, but within our control.

2. Getting better results in sports would be the quickest rise. Also expensive , and very much not in our control

3. Winning on social life offerings. You have to make being on campus an amazing experience. It was always important but with the emergence of AI, it has to become one of THE most important things. You need to have EVENTS on campus. Tailgates, music/concerts, improve the bar scene, fun street festivals on college ave Easton Ave and George St, RUfest of the old, etc. etc. Then social media will take care of the rest.

4. ... hardest of all. probably will never happen. But getting around campus has to become easier. Taking buses is such a miserable and unattractive experience. Its confusing, scary, time consuming, logistically challenging, etc etc. In a perfect world there's a light rail zipping around (elevated so not slowed by traffic).
 
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mdk02

Heisman
Aug 18, 2011
26,894
19,177
113
Caliknight said:
I never said that. I simply stated a fact. I’m unaware of this non merit thing you speak of. Every kid I know that got a degree from a great school and job on wall st worked their asses off. The “lax bros” did so while playing a D1 sport. Two huge advantages for any employer hiring. They simply offer more.
Click to expand...

Although not from Rutgers, 3 of my "lax bros" ended up on Wall St. All 3 had Harvard MBAs.
 
R

RUDiddy777

Heisman
Feb 26, 2015
33,803
38,258
113
EddieWilsonLives said:
Naive, I get it
Click to expand...

The only naïveté would be the assumption that serious candidates for Rutgers admission would know that Asian and Indian Americans are generally overrepresented in higher education overall, not just at Rutgers. Were they under the impression that classes are taught in Hindi or Mandarin?
 
S

ScarletKid2008

Heisman
Sep 8, 2006
8,050
10,567
113
I love that this topic is getting so much interaction and insights from those going through the process.

Its a passion of mine. To see Rutgers elevate and position itself as a top tier school on par with UNC, UCLA, Virgina, Georgia, Wisconsin, etc. To me that means academic ranking, student employment outcomes, student experience & satisfaction, Value/ROI, tied into its local & broader community, employee target school for select industries such as Financial Services, Pharma, Nursing, Marketing, Computer Science, Medical, Legal, Performing Arts, Agriculture, Engineering (just naming a few).

I get so frustrated when I hear stories of proud RU alumn having bad experiences, especially when it comes to their own kids or bringing neighbors/friends on campus for an event or tour, etc.

There's plenty of investments that RU has to make. But they have to be logistically and operationally better as well. Its a big place. Huge strides were made when NB was consolidated into a single college. Lots more to do here. Part of me always wonders .. does having Newark & Camden give the overall university or state an advantage or is it just spreading out resources & focus into competing priorities. When I got involved with the school, that was very real. Deans had to visit the other campuses. Professors bounce between campuses. Even our board of directors had to split our on-site meetings between the campuses. This waters down building of relationships and familiarity. Are the students of NJ and beyond really that much well served by having additional campuses? I'm sure the answer can be yes in some specific areas but the cost-benefit is something I question. Is the president of michigan or Ohio State university bouncing around the state to satisfy professors/employees are various satellite campuses?
 
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DJ Spanky

DJ Spanky

Heisman
Jul 25, 2001
50,184
61,783
113
ScarletKid2008 said:
1. .... college ave campus needs to complete its master plan & beautification ASAP ... like with urgency that it means life or death for the university. Expensive, but within our control.
Click to expand...

Absolutely stunning how they've been able to screw this up.

They are going into, what, year 4 without a centralized dining hall on College Ave.? Have they even started demolishing Brower yet?
 
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RUDiddy777

Heisman
Feb 26, 2015
33,803
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ScarletKid2008 said:
I've been involved with Rutgers from many angles in my 18 years since graduation including serving on board of alumni, fundraising for multiple departments, mentorships, etc. Most of the points you've made in here are exactly what needs to be done. And it ain't hard, but its a mindset and culture shift. And I just can't get , after all the admin and prez turnovers , who is keeping the old mindset lingering.

Ultimately its the brand and perception of RU that needs to change in addition to your points of them getting in their own way.

1. .... college ave campus needs to complete its master plan & beautification ASAP ... like with urgency that it means life or death for the university. Expensive, but within our control.

2. Getting better results in sports would be the quickest rise. Also expensive , and very much not in our control

3. Winning on social life offerings. You have to make being on campus an amazing experience. It was always important but with the emergence of AI, it has to become one of THE most important things. You need to have EVENTS on campus. Tailgates, music/concerts, improve the bar scene, fun street festivals on college ave Easton Ave and George St, RUfest of the old, etc. etc. Then social media will take care of the rest.

4. ... hardest of all. probably will never happen. But getting around campus has to become easier. Taking buses is such a miserable and unattractive experience. Its confusing, scary, time consuming, logistically challenging, etc etc. In a perfect world there's a light rail zipping around (elevated so not slowed by traffic).
Click to expand...

Great post and couldn’t agree more. In fairness to the U, what they’re doing to college ave is like replacing the engine while flying a 300 year old plane. Light rail connecting all of the campuses is a no brainer and would have an outsize impact on life there.
 
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S

S_Janowski

Heisman
May 24, 2009
14,069
26,785
113
Caliknight said:
I never said that. I simply stated a fact. I’m unaware of this non merit thing you speak of. Every kid I know that got a degree from a great school and job on wall st worked their asses off. The “lax bros” did so while playing a D1 sport. Two huge advantages for any employer hiring. They simply offer more.
Click to expand...

Haha my guy.

If you’re going to state the non-white kids are not getting into Rutgers based on Merit…

At least be man enough to admit that there are tons of white Lax Bros getting the red carpet laid out on a silver platter starting at their Prep schools all the way through Wall Street.

Enough of your anecdotal evidence. I’m not saying that all white Lax bros aren’t succeeding based on Merit but you’re full of it by not admitting there’s a population that actually aren’t.

In the end it’s no different than what you’re complaining about in this thread.
 
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Caliknight

Caliknight

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Sep 21, 2001
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S_Janowski said:
Haha my guy.

If you’re going to state the non-white kids are not getting into Rutgers based on Merit…

At least be man enough to admit that there are tons of white Lax Bros getting the red carpet laid out on a silver platter starting at their Prep schools all the way through Wall Street.

Enough of your anecdotal evidence. I’m not saying that all white Lax bros aren’t succeeding based on Merit but you’re full of it by not admitting there’s a population that actually aren’t.

In the end it’s no different than what you’re complaining about in this thread.
Click to expand...
Kids that I know that went to prep school and then to elite universities have earned it. They are just smarter and have worked harder from my experience. Don't be upset their parents loved them enough to send them to private school. Are you a Rutgers administrator or something lol?
 
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S_Janowski

Heisman
May 24, 2009
14,069
26,785
113
Caliknight said:
Kids that I know that went to prep school and then to elite universities have earned it. They are just smarter and have worked harder from my experience. Don't be upset their parents loved them enough to send them to private school. Are you a Rutgers administrator or something lol?
Click to expand...

Comprehension isn’t your strong suit…

In my last post you quoted, I literally stated that not all Lax Bros succeed without earning it, so you can refrain your your anecdotal evidence.

And you respond with more anecdotal evidence haha.

It’s okay to admit there is a population of entitled white boys skating their way from Prep school all the way to Wall Street.

It’s actually a thing whether you want to admit it or not.

I know it offends you, but this guy has 500,000 followers mocking this very thing.

 
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Caliknight

Caliknight

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Sep 21, 2001
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S_Janowski said:
Comprehension isn’t your strong suit…

In my last post you quoted, I literally stated that not all Lax Bros succeed without earning it, so you can refrain your your anecdotal evidence.

And you respond with more anecdotal evidence haha.

It’s okay to admit there is a population of entitled white boys skating their way from Prep school all the way to Wall Street.

It’s actually a thing whether you want to admit it or not.

I know it offends you, but this guy has 500,000 followers mocking this very thing.

Click to expand...

You aren't even using anecdocal evidence. You're just typing words and using a parody page as proof lol.

Be honest. You don't even know anyone who works on Wall St. Just admit those "entitled White boys" are just smarter and more accomplished. It's ok. The world needs ditch diggers too.
 
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S

S_Janowski

Heisman
May 24, 2009
14,069
26,785
113
Caliknight said:
You aren't even using anecdocal evidence. You're just typing words and using a parody page as proof lol.

Be honest. You don't even know anyone who works on Wall St. Just admit those "entitled White boys" are just smarter and more accomplished. It's ok. The world needs ditch diggers too.
Click to expand...

I have plenty of anecdotal evidence of non-whites getting into Rutgers and succeeding based on merit lmfao.
 
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