A "legacy" is when a student is accepted into a university because members of their family attended that particular school. While I understand the concept of family tradition and school pride, I believe this is an unfair policy that should not influence the admission process. It affects not only the students but the university as well. A student should not be shown preference in this aspect for several reasons.
             One reason I do not believe in legacies is because they deny students with excellent academic abilities the chance to attend the college of their choice. A college can only take so many students; if the majority of the spots are taken by legacies, there is simply not enough room for other students. Choosing a school to attend is a difficult decision with many factors to consider. This student will now have to search for an entirely new school. They have to be able to afford the cost of tuition and ensure the school has their major. What if a student comes from a poor background and is the first in his family to even attend a college? In college, you have endless opportunities to pursue. These often shape the rest of your life. A person should not be denied of these opportunities; regardless of how poor they are, or what they have been through. Even though they don't have a legacy attached to that school, he may be more qualified than a rich student trying to keep up with his families traditions. Even though I believe family traditions are important, using the legacy policy is clearly a discrimination that should be eliminated from the admission process.
             If the legacy policy is continued in the admissions process, not only will the students be at a disadvantage, but the university itself as well. Acceptance should be based solely on the achievement of the applicants. Just because the parent was eligible to attend a prestigious school, does not mean their offspring will be the same way. The sch...