Entertaining account of the college admissions scandal. I did not expect the book to go so in depth about all of the money the 1 percenters will spend to get their kids into the right schools. It's a status symbol thing apparently. Very informative book on the current insane state of college admissions in the US.

Guilty Admissions by Nicole LaPorte is a superb read with well-defined characters and plotline. Definitely a page turner and well worth a read!

Admittedly, I have been obsessed with Varsity Blues, the official name of the college admissions scandal of 2019. This book does a great job of setting the scene and giving the background on the environment that caused very wealthy parents to commit clearly immoral and illegal acts to get their children into college. It was interesting to get to know Rick Singer's background, as well as the other coaches and officials who helped him play his "side-door" shell game. I know that the scandal is still contemporary so I would love to see a book later on that gives more of an historical view of this. However, I read this book like a novel, and it was very well-done. I highly recommend it.

Eat. The. Rich. 🙄⁣
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Before today, the last time I saw my social media feed this united was during our outrage over the college admissions scandal. GUILTY ADMISSIONS is a deep dive into the people, process, and prosecution of all involved. ⁣
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The first half of this book was stronger than the second since I didn’t need the specifics on so many families once it was clear how Singer’s scheme worked. I honestly think this would have been better as a long form article or podcast series instead, but I enjoyed being baffled by how truly idiotic some people can be. ⁣
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Thank you NetGalley and Twelve for the eARC in exchange for this review. ⁣

"...Ripped from the headlines, this book is sure to be a crowd-pleaser with nonfiction readers..." - Full review to appear in BookList

https://littorallibrarian.org/unacceptable-by-melissa-korn-and-jennifer-levitz/
NOTE: Some of this appeared in my review of Unacceptable by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz, published and reviewed July 2020. Both books cover the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal. Prior to reading these books, my knowledge on the subject was pretty much limited to what I had seen in People magazine (Aunt Becky and one of the Desperate Housewives on the cover) and during late-night television (think SNL as well as monologues by various hosts). And as a former college instructor and a fan of various college sports, I had a superficial awareness of recruiting. Overall, if I had been asked whether some people got preferential admissions to colleges and universities based on income, celebrity, or athletic ability, my answer would probably have been “duh.” In recent years, I have seen friends and neighbors agonizing about their childrens’ efforts to get into a “good” school and hiring admissions counselors (which I had never heard of when I went to college), I admit I found the whole thing fascinating. I was surprised to learn the scandal that broke involving this subject was WAY bigger than the few famous names in the news.

In both Guilty Admissions and Unacceptable, Rick Singer is revealed as a sleazy guy who would do pretty much anything to get someone into their chosen college or university for the right price. And actress Lori Loughlin, her husband Mossimo Giannuli, and actress Felicity Huffman have been portrayed as parents who would pay whatever it took to get their kids into a chosen school. But there are so many more examples of the dozens of people caught up in the federal investigation into the criminal conspiracy designed to influence admissions officers at eleven schools.

Singer definitely is the central figure in the crimes, controlling two firms (Key Worldwide Foundation and The Edge College & Career Network) that were central to the fraud. The whole story started to come out when one of the (non-famous) parents, who happened to be under investigation for an unrelated securities crime, offered to give information about the admissions fraud that he had become aware of when the soccer coach at Yale asked him for $450,000 in exchange for helping get his daughter in to Yale. That coach pled guilty and led the Feds to Singer. As the scandal unfolded, many parents (including Felicity Huffman) pled guilty to mail fraud. Those who didn’t plead guilty (including Lori Laughlin) received additional federal charges of money laundering.

As it turned out, in addition to facilitating outright bribes such as those involving the Yale coach mentioned above, Singer frequently did the following: bribed exam administrators to facilitate cheating on SAT and ACT exams (including both hiring someone to take the exam in the applicants’ places and having someone change the applicants’ answers on the exams to improve scores); worked with coaches and administrators to nominate unqualified athletes as elite recruits for various sports; and used his charitable organization to launder payments. The whole thing was huge and complex, and he will serve decades in prison for his role.

What set this book apart was the focus on Southern California, and the exploration of the culture that leads parents (and students) to do anything to be in the “right” school...and that it starts in PRESCHOOL. LaPorte’s chapter “Toddler Admissions Mania” is stunning in its exposure of the “services” that are available for parents to prepare their little ones of the “kindergarten assessment test” they may need to take to ensure admission to their kindergarten of choice. One of the founders of a company that provides these services said “...she saw the need for a transitional program for preschoolers going into kinderga=rtenm so they may have the skills, confidence, and skill sets to thrive and build a strong foundation early on.” Frankly, I was equally fascinated by the way these parents want to push their kids toward fulfilling their own aspirations and saddened by the idea of what this must be doing to the children. I was glued to both these books for days, and in both cases I came away with a few strong reactions. First, I admit I went into reading these books agreeing to some extent with the defense attorneys that “Their clients were just doing what persons of prosperity have forever done to give their kids an edge.” Second, powerful people really do stick together in times of crisis: “One of the people who wrote the judge…was Jared Kushner.” And third, who knew that USC was so hard to get into? Long known by those of us from SoCal as the “University of Spoiled Children,” many of us thought that pretty much anyone could get in, if they had a famous name or a big enough wallet. But times have really changed. For example, “In 2015, the USC athletics department hit its $300 million fundraising target.” And that is just ONE year, one school.

Unacceptable is 40% footnotes/citations/documentation (including links to videos, documents, etc.). So anyone wondering how certain stories or events happened can definitely find the answer. It is very well done, and written so it reads like a novel. Guilty Admissions is an equally fascinating story, even more of a soap opera-ish look at the lack of ethical restraint that is becoming more and more the norm from the White House down. Five stars, and thanks to Twelve Books and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for this honest review.

I started the book and couldn't get in to it, despite fascination w/ the topic. I had listened to podcasts and followed the story, but this book didn't draw me in.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Being an avid follower of this case, I knew I had to read this novel. For me, the first part of the book moved very slowly with a lot of details and information to layout the story but not as riveting as the second half of the book. The book just reemphasized how far these parents were willing to go in order to ensure their child's admission to the various universities and provided the insight behind the whole crazy scandal! The first of many books that I will be reading about the college admissions scandal.

Guilty Admissions by Nicole LaPorte centers on the scandal made famous by the "elites" who cheated to get their kids admitted to prestigious schools. You might know it as Varsity Blues.  This book delves deep into the greed and entitlement which colored the lenses of parents who cheated their way into colleges to ensure their children would attend top schools. Its mind blowing but true, the lengths parents went to for their kids. 

It took me a while to get into this, but once I was engaged; I wanted to see what would happen next. I can't imagine the time and research the author put into this story! Well done.

Here is the official premise:

Guilty Admissions weaves together the story of an unscrupulous college counselor named Rick Singer, and how he preyed on the desperation of some of the country's wealthiest families living in a world defined by fierce competition, who function under constant pressure to get into the "right" schools, starting with pre-school; non-stop fundraising and donation demands in the form of multi-million-dollar galas and private parties; and a community of deeply insecure parents who will do anything to get their kids into name-brand colleges in order to maintain their own A-list status.

Investigative reporter Nicole LaPorte lays bare the source of this insecurity -- that in 2019, no special "hook" in the form of legacy status, athletic talent, or financial giving can guarantee a child's entrance into an elite school. The result is paranoia, deception, and true crimes at the peak of the American social pyramid.

With a glittering cast of Hollywood actors -- including Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin -- hedge fund CEOs, sales executives, and media titans, Guilty Admissions is a soap-opera-slash-sneak-peek-behind-the-curtains at America's richest social circles; an examination of the cutthroat world of college admissions; and a parable of American society in 2019, when the country is run by a crass tycoon and all totems of status and achievement have become transactional and removed from traditions of ethical restraint.


This book will be out on February 23, 2021. You can pre-order here!

This book had an interesting premise. The lead-up to the actual investigation was rather slow and dull. The second half of the book was so good, I read it all in one day. The first half was so slow it took me almost a month to get through. It was very educational though, and I would recommend it

“As I tell people all the time, if you’re going to spend five thousand dollars on a handbag, what is five thousand, ten thousand, to hire a college counselor?” This quote explains the mindset of the people who participated in this scam. I saw a 45-minute documentary about this case and was horrified, but the show simply exposes the tip of the iceberg. This book tells the entire story of the greed, arrogance, and entitlement of the rich and famous as they “buy” a college educations at top-tier schools for their children. It was definitely an eye-opener for me! The book is well-written and provides a lot of detail. The citations are set up at the end, and they are extensive. I would definitely recommend this book. Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in return for my honest review.

Wow. This book. A juicy deep dive into the Varsity Blues scandal. La Porte digs deep into the culture of the wealthy elites who thought they could bribe their children’s way into elite schools and get away with it. Perfect for fans of John Carreyrou’s Bad Blood.

LaPorte digs deep into the Varsity Blues scandal, in which wealthy parents bribed sports coaches and faked standardized test results to get their children into elite colleges. At the center: college admissions counselor/conman Rick Singer. LaPorte learns Singer’s origin story, going way back to his childhood through his college years and rise in the college admissions world. LaPorte uses court documents to reconstruct conversations and learn exactly how the scandal operated.

Though it is nonfiction, the book reads like fiction because of the colorful cast of characters involved. LaPorte takes us from mommy bloggers to celebrities to CEOs and the culture of elite private grade schools and high schools. LaPorte explains the weak points in the colleges’ leadership and the pressure points for athletic coaches that allowed this scandal to incubate. Fascinating book and a must read.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. The lengths parents will go to get their kids into the best universities. This book was very insightful about the college admissions scandal This book was very informative.

**I received and voluntarily read an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

The first of many books that I will be reading about the college admissions scandal.

The beginning is a little dry and slow, but not the worst I've read.

I had hoped that maybe I would be able to see why these parents felt that getting their children into college was worth anything, even jail time. After all, most parents feel this way, right?

Spoiler alert- for most of the parents involved in the scandal it boils down to this: their children could basically get into any school EXCEPT the ones the parents wanted. And if poor little Beth down the block has to suffer through a state school so my perfect little Susan can go to an Ivy, who cares? My perfect Susan is way more special (and rich!) than little Beth anyway. And who cares that Susan has never rowed (or other sport) before and little Beth has been on the crew team for years? Look at how pretty my Susan with her perfect blowout will look in the uniform compared to little Beth and that not-on-purpose messy bun! Here, have tons of money to make sure that Susan gets into the spot that Beth actually worked for and deserves.

Overall, it's a nice job on the writing. It's not something that I would read more than once, but I'm glad I read it. I didn't have any sympathy for the parents and very little for their children before I read this, and I have even less sympathy for their children now.

Guilty Admissions is a home run! The author provides in depth details behind the scandal and the parents who participated in the scam. She shines a light on what went on behind the scenes and brings it to life for the reader. This book is a classic truth is stranger than fiction. Fascinating read and hard to put down! Thank you to Netgalley.

Well written informative a scandal that still shocks.Parents who will do and did do anything at any cost to get their kids into the college of their the parents choice,Paying immense amounts of money to get the college admitted lying about their child’s sports excellence.A shocking story that the author does an excellent job of delving into,the story.#netgalley #guiltyadmissions

It was the scandal that rocked the nation. Are you entitled to pay to give your child a leg up in college or even give them entrance. A large group of parents says no.

Super impressed with the author and all the facts of the case.
What is aggravating is the gall of these parents, and the kids too. You can't tell me that those kids didn't know anything that was going on. But anyway, great book, informative.

Thanks to ,publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free,it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

It was a good book. A little slow to start but picked up from there. Kinda interesting to see the take on college and how some people feel like it is a right for their kids to go to certain schools.