George Bush's of the world, 2009 is your year

Of course this won't have any impact on students who will need financial assistance. No, not any chance at all. The fact that schools such as Harvard have lost billions won't matter at all. As they always do but even more so in 2009 (and 2010 and probably 2011), the Ivy League schools and other criminally expensive universities in America will be looking for duds to pay full fare to balance the books. What a spectacular system of education for the elite that is usually only matched in the Third World.

Facing fallen endowments and needier students, many colleges are looking more favorably on wealthier applicants as they make their admissions decisions this year.

Institutions that have pledged to admit students regardless of need are finding ways to increase the number of those who pay full fare in ways that allow the colleges to maintain the claim of being need-blind — taking more students from the transfer or waiting lists, for instance, or admitting more foreign students who pay full freight.

Colleges that acknowledge taking financial status into account say they are even more aware of that factor this year.

“If you are a student of means or ability, or both, there has never been a better year,” said Robert A. Sevier, an enrollment consultant to colleges.

Of course this will be the case. Just like all of the US universities who were steering students in the direction of lenders who kicked back money, this one sounds like another example of how the university system is moving in the wrong direction, favoring the elite as opposed to the stupid wealthy.

Then again, if you look at current crisis and the high rate of Harvard MBA's out there - Bush, Stanley O'Neal, John Thain, Fred "the shred" Goodwin, Henry Paulson, Christopher Cox - maybe clogging the supposed elite schools with even more duds will help bring an end to the system. Wishful thinking, but this is supposed to be the year of hope and change.