Unequal Access to the Leadership Pipeline

A recent study found that 49 percent of corporate industry leaders and 50 percent of government leaders graduated from only 12 selective colleges and universities.¹ It’s clear that these institutions – and a few dozen other top schools – constitute a pipeline to our nation’s leadership sector. Apart from the quality of the education these institutions provide, there is the world they open to their graduates: the benefits of going to college with intellectual equals who are themselves connected to leadership sectors and the social and networking capital that comes with a degree from a highly selective college.

But these colleges and universities are rarely on the radar for the estimated 30,000 high-achieving, under-resourced students who graduate from high school each year. More than 70% of students at the nation’s 193 most selective colleges come from families in the top income quartile. Just 3 percent come from households in the bottom quarter.²

This phenomenon, known as “undermatching,” has long-term consequences for high-achievers from under-resourced families: lower graduation rates, fewer opportunities after college and the possibility of a continued cycle of economic disadvantage. But it also has far-reaching consequences for our society: We are missing out on many young people with innovative minds and leadership qualities who could—and should—be helping to shape our future.

Impediments to Access: The Far-Reaching Effects of Economic Inequality

Each year, there are thousands of under-resourced, high achieving students from public high schools who don’t even consider the possibility of attending a highly competitive college despite their superior academic records and potential for leadership. A confluence of factors serves to hinder their access to institutions that their more affluent peers typically apply to as a matter of course.

It starts with access to information and support—itself a function of the economic disparities in our nation’s secondary education system. We know from experience that superior students of limited means often don’t receive the guidance that’s essential to starting them on the road toward a college that’s a good match for their intellectual abilities and aspirations. In many low-income school districts, college guidance services are often very limited. Moreover, because the majority of students at these schools who pursue higher education after graduation choose to attend state or community colleges close to home, counselors may not be familiar with the complexities of applying to highly selective colleges. They may also be unaware of the process for securing the financial aid that that is available to talented under-resourced students to attend highly selective schools.

Under-resourced students also lack the kind of personal and often sophisticated guidance and support that more affluent students receive as they are preparing to apply to colleges. High-achieving students in well-resourced communities are more likely to have guidance counselors who encourage them to apply to competitive colleges and who understand the application process for these schools. These students have access to academic advising and standardized test preparation that positions them to demonstrate their abilities through rigorous courses and high standardized test scores. They often have family and friends who have attended selective colleges, and they attend high schools that college admissions officers visit on recruiting trips.

LEDA overcomes both the information and resource gap by providing our nation’s most talented under-resourced students with these same advantages. LEDA Scholars are exposed to the range of college options available to them through campus visits, info sessions, dinners, and fly-out opportunities. Our college counselors guide them through every step of the complex process of applying for admission and financial aid, helping them overcome the hidden costs of applying to selective schools. Scholars receive the kind of academic advising and test preparation that allow their applications to stack up against those of their more affluent peers. And perhaps most importantly, the LEDA community of staff and Scholars reminds them every day that they belong at the best schools in the country.