Colors in Spanish Red, Purple, Beige, and More

Like other adjectives, names of the common colors in Spanish must agree with the nouns they describe in both gender and number. However, in most cases, names of colors come after the nouns they describe, not before as in English. Additionally, the names of some of the more unusual colors in Spanish are given a unique treatment. Names for the basic colors in Spanish behave the same way as other adjectives do: They come after the noun they refer to and must match it in number and gender.Less common colors can be formed by using de color, color de, or simply color followed by the name of the color.If a noun such as cereza (cherry) or naranja (orange) is used as a color by itself, many speakers do not modify it for number or gender. Names of Common Spanish Colors Here are some common colors: amarillo: yellowanaranjado: orangeazul: blueblanco: whitedorado: goldengris: graymarrà ³n: brownnegro: blackpà ºrpura: purplerojo: redrosado: pinkverde: green Note that the form of these Spanish colors will change depending on the number and gender of whats being described: Tengo un coche amarillo. (I have one yellow car.)Tiene dos coches amarillos. (He has two yellow cars.)Tienes una flor amarilla. (You have a yellow flower.)Tenemos diez flores amarillas. (We have ten yellow flowers.) The Grammar of Color in Spanish The most common colors are used in the same way as other adjectives. However, almost any suitable noun can be used as the name for a color, in at least four different ways. For example, here are four ways you could say cherry-colored car. (A car is un coche and a cherry is una cereza.) coche cerezacoche color de cerezacoche de color cerezacoche color cereza Similarly, a coffee-colored shirt could be camisa de color cafà ©, camisa color de cafà ©, camisa color cafà ©, and camisa cafà ©. The choice will depend on the region and speaker. However, nouns that are frequently used as color (such as cereza or cafà ©) are more likely to be used alone. Here are some nouns that are commonly used as colors in this way, although numerous others can be used: beige, beis: beigecereza: cherry-coloredchocolate: chocolate-coloredesmerelda: emeraldgrana: dark redhumo: smokylila: lilacmalva: mauvemostaza: mustard-colorednaranja: orangeoro: goldpaja: straw-coloredrosa: pinkturquesa: turquoisevioleta: violet When a noun is used by itself in such a way, it is often still treated as a noun rather than an adjective, so it doesnt change form as adjectives typically do. (Some grammarians consider nouns used in this way to be invariable adjectives—adjectives that dont change for number or gender.) Thus, mustard-colored houses would likely be casas mostaza, not casas mostazas (although the latter could also be used). However, the more often a noun is used as a color, the more likely it is to be treated as a regular adjective—one that changes in number with the noun being described. Often, however, different speakers will disagree. Compound Colors Compound colors are those that are preceded by descriptors like light and dark, such as light blue and dark blue. In Spanish, the most common words for those specific terms are claro and oscuro, respectively, used to form compound colors such as azul claro and azul oscuro. The compound colors are invariable, meaning they dont change with number or gender. Sample Sentences Showing Color Usage Casi la mitad de los estadounidenses tenà ­an ojos azules. (Almost half of U.S. residents have blue eyes.)La sangre puede tener un color rojo brillante o casi negruzco dependiendo del nivel de oxà ­geno. (Blood can have a brilliant red color or almost blackish, depending on the oxygen level.)Està ¡ rodeado por uvas color de ajenjo. (It is surrounded by absinthe-colored grapes.)Te presentamos los diferentes estilos de uà ±as color de vino. (Were showing you the different styles of wine-colored fingernails.)Las hortalizas de hojas verde oscuro son fuentes importantes de carotenos. (Vegetables with dark-green leaves are important sources of carotenes.)

Breast Cancer A Unique Non Wired Bra - 915 Words

Millie is a unique non-wired bra intended to make a difference to the lives of so many women especially targeted for women after breast cancer. Sue Pringle founded the idea of a soft and shapely, non-wired bra, with a pocketed lining designed for women who want to regain confidence after breast cancer. Pringle, who was a victim of breast cancer realized the difficulty of finding a suitable bra after her breast surgery. After ten years of breast cancer, Pringle understood that she and other women who have also suffered from breast cancer could no longer wear an ordinary bras. For this reason, she was determined to discover Millie after her research find out that many women felt the same way she did about ordinary bras. For instance,†¦show more content†¦The value that these women after breast cancer are getting from this product is something beautiful and comfortable to regain their confidence. Millie Lingerie has done a remarkable job at marketing their non-wired bars. One of the ways they marketed their bras is by having a plan on how many products they’re going to sell to potential customers. To demonstrate, Millie has set a goal to pre-sell 500 or more bras as a reward, Gift to someone special, or Gift to a Charity. This marketing method allows for Pringle’s products to get on to the hands of her target market. With the rewards system, Millie has sent out bra rewards designed to make sure everybody can get involved on their project whether if they’re: women, men, children, friends, and family. The rewards car method is a great way to reach out to their recipients and create customer loyalty. Millie has also allowed for their users to give feedback on their product to better improve it. To clarify, they have asked women after breast cancer how it feels to wear the bra in hope to receive vital feedback for ongoing product development, and further proof of market to future trade customers. Not only is Millie offering rewards but she is also offer a Gift a Bra to Charity Reward. Millie is partnered with a couple of charities such as Keeping Abreast and The Nottingham Hospitals Charity. Both charities support women through some of the hard times during breast cancer

Corporate Performance Strengths Concerns - Myassignmenthelp.Com

Querstion: Discuss About The Corporate Social Performance Strengths Concerns? Answer: Introduction Recruiting an effective workforce is as tough as mining diamonds out of a pit. The modernization and globalization, which the world faces, has led to the challenges that a human resource manager faces in recruiting the workforce for a particular company. The major impact that poses a threat to the workforce is the contrasting phenomenon apart from being diligent in their approach. The talent of the employee and its proper implementation is an important part that justifies the capabilities of the employee, which might be a restricting factor in the recruitment process as skill varies with diversity. The report aims at analyzing a case study of a company, located in Australia, and the challenges they face in recruiting the workforce there, based on a variety of different criteria. The report discusses the key challenges that are being faced by the recruitment team or the human resource manager who is responsible for the recruitment. It enumerates certain recommendations in order to make a difference in the recruitment process and thus help the recruitment team in overcoming the challenges to recruit the workforce for the given organization. Case study The concerned company according to the requirement of the report is being taken as ANZ (Australia and New Zealand Banking Group). The issues that the sector faced limited its scopes in expanding, though the ANZ is being considered as the most reliable bank and ranks fourth in the world for the services they rendered to their consumers, in the particular sector (Ying Liao et al., 2017). The recruitment industry has undergone a considerable change with respect to the changes in the requirements and the organizations quest for searching the best talent. The change in the job market and the change in the requirements of the global clients based on the effects of globalization influence the recruitment process largely. The competitiveness and the goals that the company sets create a huge difference in the recruitment process of the firm (Rees Smith, 2017). Similarly, the concerned company for this report is facing serious issues relating to the recruitment of the workforce. The challenges limit the recruitment process thus not only creating the issues of unemployment but also the company suffers due to the limitations in the recruitment process due to the limited workforce they could generate. The challenges that limit the scope and operations of the recruitment process of the concerned company are discussed in the section. Challenges faced in the process of recruiting the workforce The workforce plays an important role in the making and the gradual progress of the organization. Therefore, in order to make the company or the firm progress well a comprehensive and competitive recruitment is undertaken. The factors that judge the workforce is the inherent talent that the workforce employs in understanding the individual job role and act accordingly (Bibb, 2016). The company faces a challenge in determining the most appropriate individuals depending on their talent and specialization thus determining the expectations from every individual is an important aspect that must be considered. Appointing an appropriate workforce is like mining out gems, considering the capabilities of the candidates and thus allocating their job role accordingly. The concerned company, the ANZ, is looking out for people experienced in accounts and finance whereas the workforce they are looking for are not experienced enough for the job profile resulting to a diminished supply of the workforce for the company (Van Doesum et al., 2016). Moreover, the job role that the company is offering is quite complex for the common people with the specified knowledge on the banking sector. Therefore, the company faces a diminishing supply of the workforce under this criterion. The organizational image also plays a major role in determining the recruitment of the workforce (Bibb, 2016). The company that is looking out for new candidates also carries an image in the external market. Consistency in keeping up with the organizational image is an important priority for the company, as the organizational image helps in maintaining the status of the organization in the market. The concerned company in this report carries a well to do image in the market, and therefore it maintains a framework for recruiting the workforce. Choosing the workforce that is best suited for the organization is an important phenomenon that affects the recruiting system prevalent in the organization (Hunter et al., 2017). In order to keep up with the brand name and the image that the company has in the market, the company formulates steps in order to make its decision based on the talent and the expertise of the candidates thus helping them to meet their general targets. The discrepancy arises when the human resource is limited and majority of the individuals skills do not match the requirements of the company. According to a recent survey that has been undertaken in Australia, around 58% of the recruiters face the biggest challenge in hiring the perfect candidate due to the lack of skilled and qualified human resource (Rothenberg, Hull Tang, 2017). Demographic structure of the region plays an important role in appointing the workforce for an organization. The change in the family structures influences the recruitment process adversely (Green Vandall-Walker, 2017). The recruiter might not find the talent they have been searching for due to the single parent families, where the person whom the company might have appointed and the person who was actually eligible for the job role is busy maintaining and looking after the family. On the other hand, the age and the generation gap create a major impact on the recruitment of the individuals for the company. The growing age and concerns of retirement pose an important threat in retaining the experienced workforce. The experienced workforce is best suited for the companys progress as they are aware of their job role and can effectively fulfill the requirements of the company and the clients. They can also adapt to the changing situations (Collins, 2016). Recruiting the amateurs might be economic for the organization, but it involves a risk of uncertainty. The dedication of the amateurs for the company and its progress is less compared to the aged workforce and therefore the aged workforce is considered as the assets of the company (Nickson Baum, 2017). The concerned company, the ANZ, aims at retaining the aged workforce through proper management, as the company understands the implications and the risks involved in appointing the amateurs (Donovan et al., 2014). However, the retirement of the aged workforce leaves the company with no other options other than appointing the amateurs to compensate the retirement of the aged employees. There is an involvement of risk in the process as the company must choose the most eligible candidate to supplement the retired person as it helps to keep up to the flow of the work schedule. Diversity in the workplace and the candidates that are being chosen by the company as its employees is again a serious point of concern as diversity in the workforce can give rise to serious issues in the management of the workforce (Frey Osborne, 2017). People coming from different backgrounds and heritage (both cultural and ethnic) and mingling to get the job done effectively and serve the common goal is an important criteria that might work well with the company. The issues that the company might face due to the diversity arise due to the mismanagement of the diversity, resulting to fierce arguments that hamper the work and the progress of the company. The recruitment process undertaken by the ANZ involves a series of steps in order to judge and determine the authenticity and the capability of the candidate. The complete process examines the candidates capabilities in understanding and maintaining the job role and that the candidate is capable of fulfilling the expectation that the company holds (Cohen King, 2017). At the first stage, the candidate applies for the job. The second step includes an interview of the candidate based on the competency level that judges the talent and the resourcefulness of the candidate. Under this step, the candidate is required to answer a competency question, which helps in determining the talent and the skill of the candidate (Davis Davis, 2017). The third step, being the most general step, helps in determining the background of the candidate and the origin, which again helps in determining the capabilities of the candidates. The problem arises when the competency question limits the candidature, tough enough for the candidates to surpass (Borodai, 2017). However, the competency question is a necessity for the company as it helps in determining the capabilities of the candidates. It also helps in choosing the right candidate from the million others applying for the job. There are agencies, which help in undertaking the complete recruitment process. Conclusion Therefore, from the above analysis it can be concluded that the banking organization, named ANZ, faces a series of issues in the process of recruiting the workforce. The organization aims at recruiting the right person for the right job thus making it a point in maintaining the organizational image and the brand name. The recruitment process that the organization undertakes is viable for choosing the skillful human resource and therefore faces the limitations due to the lack of skilled and experienced labor. The issues and the challenges that are being faced by the organization are being listed in the section above. It aims at discussing the important lags that the company faces in recruiting the appropriate human resource determining the capabilities of the candidate and the job role they would be offering to the candidates. At the time of recruitment, the candidate sells himself to the needs of the company. On the other hand, the company too sells itself to meet the needs and requirements of the employee. Recommendations that might be helpful in outnumbering the issues and challenges in the recruitment of the workforce are being discussed in this section of the report. In order to take hold of skilled labor and appoint them for the respective job role in which they expertise, the company must consider using the social media to advertize about their requirements in the certain fields relating to their own requirements and stating therein the expectations that it holds from the candidates. Undertaking open interviews can also be a measure that the company can consider while undertaking the recruitment process. Formulating proper incentive plans too can help in resolving the issue of recruiting skilled labor for the company. In order to undertake the proper recruitment, the company can formulate tests that will help in determining the capabilities of the candidates and thus portray their skill and talent in the particular fields. The company can also take help from the freelancers and the young generation that works on a part time basis in order to improve the recruitment status. It helps in maintaining the human resource of the company according to the requirements. The above-mentioned recommendations and the case study aims at discussing the challenges that the concerned company faces in recruiting the workforce and the solutions to overcome the challenges respectively. References Bibb, S. (2016).Strengths-based recruitment and development: a practical guide to transforming talent management strategy for business results. Kogan Page Publishers. Borodai, V. (2017). Crowd recruiting as the competence assessment of applicants service company.International Scientific Review, (1), 46-47. Cohen, E., King, D. (2017). Human resource management: developing sustainability mindsets. Collins, C. (2016). Challenges of recruitment and retention in rural areas.North Carolina medical journal,77(2), 99-101. Davis, P. J., Davis, P. J. (2017). How HR can create competitive advantage for the firm: Applying the principles of resource-based theory.Human Resource Management International Digest,25(2), 4-6. Donovan, J. L., Paramasivan, S., de Salis, I., Toerien, M. (2014). Clear obstacles and hidden challenges: understanding recruiter perspectives in six pragmatic randomised controlled trials.Trials,15(1), 5. Frey, C. B., Osborne, M. A. (2017). The future of employment: how susceptible are jobs to computerisation?.Technological Forecasting and Social Change,114, 254-280. Green, C., Vandall-Walker, V. (2017). So you think youve designed an effective recruitment protocol?.Nurse Researcher,24(4), 32-34. Hunter, S. T., Shortland, N. D., Crayne, M. P., Ligon, G. S. (2017). Recruitment and selection in violent extremist organizations: Exploring what industrial and organizational psychology might contribute.American Psychologist,72(3), 242. Nickson, D., Baum, T. (2017). Young at heart, but what about my body? Age and aesthetic labour in the hospitality and retail industries. InThe Palgrave Handbook of Age Diversity and Work(pp. 539-559). Palgrave Macmillan UK. Rees, G., Smith, P. (Eds.). (2017).Strategic human resource management: An international perspective. Sage. Rothenberg, S., Hull, C. E., Tang, Z. (2017). The impact of human resource management on corporate social performance strengths and concerns.Business Society,56(3), 391-418. Van Doesum, K. T., Riebschleger, J., Carroll, J., Grov, C., Lauritzen, C., Mordoch, E., Skerfving, A. (2016). Successful recruitment strategies for prevention programs targeting children of parents with mental health challenges: An international study.Child Youth Services,37(2), 156-174. Ying Liao, Y., Soltani, E., Wang, W. Y., Iqbal, A. (2017). The dynamics of workplace relationships in a diverse internationally staffed organisation: a qualitative ethnographic assessment.The International Journal of Human Resource Management,28(8), 1182-1211.

Burger King Customer and Market situation of the industry Essay Example

Burger King Customer and Market situation of the industry Paper More and more people are becoming aware and conscious of what they eat. People prefer healthy food. Mad cow disease and foot and mouth disease has created an awareness which has made people wary of eating out side. More and more working or white collar people prefer eating outside now as working people are emerging and preferring eating or grabbing a quick bite while at work. This has led to variety of fast food outlets emerging rapidly across the emirates. Though fast food joints are designed and marketed as kids food and for teenagers we can see a growing trend of University students and white-collar workers preferring to eat at fast food joints. The need in people of todays market is fast and cheap food which is value for money and easily available. We can see that though designed for kids and for family the emerging universities and educational institutes has led the fast food industry to a large volume of new customers. Also the placement of fast food joints near trade hums and offices has prompted office workers to opt to have fast food. We will write a custom essay sample on Burger King Customer and Market situation of the industry specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Burger King Customer and Market situation of the industry specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Burger King Customer and Market situation of the industry specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer The reduced nutrition concerns amongst consumers has been a boon for the fast food industry, which how ever is going through a slight depression due to the heath scares of foot and mouth and the mad cow disease. But as one marketing manager pointed out these are just temporary phases in the industry, the fast foods industry is here to stay. We agree with the manager because we can see that even though of this slight depression fast food giants like Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and Hardees and McDonalds are opening up more branches across the region. Due to the lucrative market conditions we are seeing major global fast food players entering the market. The market in the UAE and the environment is such that due to the low entry barriers more and more fast food companies are opening up. Hence the market has become very competitive. We can see giants like Subway, Pizza Hut, Wendys, AW and many more. The industry for Burger tough has remained very different. The major players in this industry are Hardees, McDonalds and Burger king. Amongst them selves these three companies have the 95% of the burger market, with the rest being captured by other brands. The recent health scare though affecting sale everywhere in the world did very little sales drop in the UAE because of the Stringent health rules and with no such cases being reported here. The fact that the people and the masses looking for cheap and quality fast food option has initiated a promotional value war amongst the three giants. The three giants namely Burger king, McDonalds and Hardees have started various campaigns in which Low prices and gifts have been the prime attraction for the consumers. Each brands has spent tremendous amount of resources and time into cashing in on this so-called value for money concept. The fact that consumers want variety and choice has resulted in each of the above-mentioned Burger Giants in creating variety of burgers. With McDonalds having seven different types of burgers, Hardees having thirteen different varieties of burgers and Burger King offering eleven different types of burgers. The three giants of the burger industry have maintained high level of competition and quality, which has made a barrier to entry by any foreign company. Product and Price situation: The fact that Burger King has a whopping variety of eleven different types of burgers. An interesting claim Burger King claims is that there are 1024 different ways to make a whopper burger. The burgers of Burger King are considered bigger and more filling as compared to other burgers in the market. In asking 100 different people of their views on which burger is more filling 42% claim that definitely Burger King burgers are more filling, 30% prefer McDonalds burgers to be more filling and the remainder 28% claim that Hardees is more filling. In a similar survey when asked as to which Burger outlet the consumers preferred on the basis on Value and Price 45% claim that McDonalds is better as its prices are way lower than any other burger outlet, and Burger King and Hardees coming up to 27% and 28% respectively. In the similar questionnaire the customers expressed that they considered and accepted the fact that though Burger King burgers are comparatively expensive they are more filling and of better quality as compared to McDonalds, yet the speed of quality of Burger King was far better in McDonalds. The quality of burgers has changed somewhat in the industry because of the health scare ad nutrition concerns. The changing trends and the consumer demand had made a new series of burgers to emerge, the double and triple story burgers, i. e. not one patty but two to three patty of burger. Also the prices have been reduced considerably and burger king keeping in mind the variable demand and type of customers it has, it has ensured that it has three different prices for its burgers catering to the different tastes and preferences of customers it caters to. Burger King has three different price strata, and each has three to four different kinds of burgers in it. Burger King had 12 Dhs, 15 Dhs and 18 Dhs burgers, each unique in their own attributes. The burgers them selves have become richer and tastier as stated by loyal consumers at Burger King. One of the hurdles that the burger industry here complains is the loss in the quality of its product due to the restrictions imposed on importing of meat, mutton and chicken. Also the restriction of launching their flag ship product of Ham burgers in the region due to the restrictions imposed by the Islamic religion. Burger king cannot introduce their hamburgers, as neither can McDonalds. This restriction complains a manager from McDonald does not allow us to being in all or the entire product range that we here at McDonalds can offer. Also another reason why the quality of burgers vary over here as compared to any where else in the west is due to the imposition of laws making it compulsory to ensure that the meat in question id Halal or allowable by Islam. This has made Burger King and McDonalds to import meat from not their usual distributors but rather from local or regional importers. Another interesting fact is that the Burger Industry namely Burger King and McDonalds along with Hardees is that major share of the profit per burger comes from their own products that is as we see it a Double Whopper Meal comes for Dhs. 18 and it includes a Regular French fries and a Regular Coke now if we see it individually we can get the burger for 13 Dhs. and the Cold drink and French Fries for 5 Dhs each, hence the combined prices would be 13 + 5 + 5 = 23 Dhs. yet Burger King charges us a bundled price of 18 Dhs. what we found out was that Burger king makes a chunk of its profit per meal on its Burger. Hence Burger King can earn a different level of price and margin on each of its meals. Also in simple words Burger King makes more profit selling a single sandwich as compared to selling it as a bundle (with French fries and cold drink). Hence in this industry per unit margin of profit is tremendous but because of the stiff competition and challenges imposed by the three giants no entrants are allowed. Also we would see that a normal whopper burger of burger king would cost 8 Dhs. , yet if it were in a promotion it would be sold for 5 Dhs. thus prove that the margin of profit is extremely high. Distribution situation: In terms of distribution we wish to discuss the number o branches and their locations. In that aspect McDonalds has far more branches and stall as compared to Hardees or Burger King. McDonald in its short span of few years has already established an extensive network of outlets through out the UAE with heavy emphasis on Dubai. Where as Burger king has only 6 outlets. Also McDonalds is located at many venues where it draws its synergies from the location it is in. we found that McDonalds has located its outlets at petrol pumps in major malls and also near residence and office or trade hubs, this allows them to attract customers. We found that McDonalds drew a major advantage against Burger King by locating it self across the UAE and in the Globe so that it was accessible and available. This attributed to better product awareness. Burger King on the other hand has failed to establish itself so strongly in the Dubai market and UAE market, yet it has counted on Snob effect to draw its customers. Burger king how ever has located it self in few yet prime locations where it draws on from the high spending power of the consumers and also on accessibility (City Center). Promotion and Competitive situation: The fast food industry in the region has shown the emphasis and the importance of promotion. In the burger industry itself we can see a promotional war-taking place between McDonald and Burger King, with Hardees playing a minor role. Where McDonalds and Burger king emphasizes on Value Meals and movie memorabilia, Hardees emphasizing on Big Gifts and prizes. But we can see that the Global Advertisement and promotional campaigns of these burger giants spills in to UAE also. Most of the promotional schemes undertaken here are very much similar to the ones undertaken in the region and hence no customization is seen. Though lucrative market for both McDonalds and Burger King we saw that other than value meals both had nothing special for the Regional or UAE market. The competition between McDonald and Burger King is fierce as now both compete to capture a larger market share of the existing size of the market. Burger King has so far emphasized on its Value and quality and hygienic food. The Competition for Burger king and McDonalds is rising slowly but steadily from Hardees who underwent a radical face lift and change of logo and customer driven service standards, yet the real competition is coming from a wholly unpredictable side, the small cafeterias. Yep though hard to believe these small sized cafeterias are spread out through out the entire UAE and cater to a large segment of the market. What we noticed was that on daily basis and on regular basis teenagers, college students and working class people preferred to go to these small cafeterias rather, and prefer Hardees and McDonalds and Burger king on special occasion or if quality is of prime concern or if time was of essence. Surprisingly of the 100 students we questioned 85 accepted that they went more regularly to these small cafeterias than to anywhere else. The reason they stated was that these students stated was that these cafeterias were available everywhere and anywhere, they were much cheaper and they had good things to eat. Though baffling as it may sound we think that there is a common segment, which is competed by the burger industry and these small cafeterias. The upper segment of the market with good marginal propensity to consume and with higher end of the income strata preferred burger outlets. The low-income group of people namely students who cannot afford or labor class prefer these cafeterias. And the teenagers/student and white collar people prefer either of the two, depending on their budget at that given time and the accessibility. We found that these classes of people namely the middle class were very flexible and would adapt to either of the two industries, i. e. urger or cafeterias. When compared with price we found that both were cheap and the cost of a decent average Burger meal from Hardees/ McDonald/ Burger King would be same for a complete meal from these small cafeterias. We understood that the only thing, which differentiated or made the difference, was the quality of the food. As one student put it; we students are ok with anything, it all costs the same for us, we are hungry and we need something to eat, now if it is a burger or if it is a cafeteria burger for us it is all the same. On asking a white-collar male bachelor, he replied we have to be practical as bachelor I consider saving an importance, and if I can get a filling meal at one of these cafeterias which are near by why should I go further down the road to locate a burger joint? Unless I am looking for quality it is indeed a threat, which needs to be addressed by the burger industry. The small cafeterias though catering to a different segment o the market, do sometimes and are taking growing share for the burger joint industry. They are a threat and need to be addressed for the future of burger joints.

5 Reasons Not to Homeschool Your Child

5 Reasons Not to Homeschool Your Child If you’re considering home education, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons of homeschooling seriously. While there are many positive reasons to homeschool, it isn’t the best fit for every family. Consider the following five reasons to not homeschool to help you carefully examine your personal motives and available resources before making this decision. Sometimes a lack of personal motivation is revealed when potential homeschooling parents consider their curriculum choices. They don’t want their children in public school for a variety of reasons, but they also don’t really want to take on the responsibility for their childrens education. I’m looking for something he can do on his own, they say or, â€Å"I’m just too busy to spend a lot of time on this.† 1. Husband and Wife Are Not in Agreement About Homeschooling No matter how much you want to home educate your children, it will not work for your family if you don’t have your spouse’s support. You may be the one preparing and teaching the lessons, but you will need the support of your husband  (or wife), both emotionally and financially. Also, your children will be much less likely to cooperate if they don’t sense a united front from mom and dad. If your spouse is unsure about homeschooling, consider the possibility of a trial year. Then, look for ways to get the non-teaching parent involved so that he sees the benefits firsthand. 2. You Haven’t Taken the Time to Count the Cost There are obvious financial costs of homeschooling, but many would-be homeschooling parents dont consider the personal cost. Don’t  rush into the decision to homeschool  because your friends are doing it, or because it sounds like fun. (Even though it can definitely be a lot of fun!). You must have a personal conviction and commitment that will carry you through the days when you want to pull your hair out. For the sake of your family, your reasoning must supersede your emotions. 3. You Are Not Willing to Learn Patience and Perseverance Homeschooling is a personal sacrifice of time and energy based on love. It takes careful planning and a willingness to go the distance. You will not have the luxury of allowing your feelings to dictate whether or to not to homeschool on a particular day. As time goes on, you will be stretched, challenged, and discouraged. You will doubt yourself, your choices, and your sanity. Those thoughts and emotions seem to be universal among homeschooling parents. You don’t have to have superhuman patience to begin homeschooling, but you do have to be willing to develop patience, with both yourself and your children. 4. You Are Unable or Unwilling to Live on One Income To give your children the kind of education they deserve, you will probably need to plan on being home full-time. Often the teaching parent who tries to work while homeschooling finds herself stretched in too many directions and tends to burn out. If you are planning to hold even a part-time job while teaching school, especially K-6, you may be better off choosing to not homeschool. When your children are older, they are more likely to be more independent and self-disciplined in their studies, allowing the teaching parent to consider working outside the home. Carefully consider with your spouse what changes are necessary to make your school a priority. If you must homeschool and work outside the home, there are ways to do so successfully. Talk with your partner and potential caregivers to develop a plan to make it work. 5. You Are Not Willing to Be Involved in Your Children’s Education If your current idea of home educating is choosing a curriculum that your children can do by themselves while you monitor their progress from a distance, you may want to consider not homeschooling. That scenario might work depending on how independent a learner each child is, but even if they can handle it, you will be missing out on so much. That doesnt mean never using workbooks; some children love them. Workbooks can be beneficial for independent study when you are teaching multiple children at different levels. However, homeschooling parents who plan hands-on activities to blend into their daily lessons and learn alongside their children often find their own thirst for knowledge rekindled. They are enthusiastic and passionate about influencing their children’s lives,  giving them a love of learning, and creating a learning-rich environment, which should be one of the ultimate goals of home education. These points are not intended to discourage you completely. However, it is vital that you seriously consider the impact that choosing to homeschool will have on you and your family. It’s essential to have a realistic idea of what you’ll be getting into before you start. If the timing and circumstances arent right for your family, its okay to choose to not homeschool! Updated by Kris Bales

Effective, Efficient, Effectual, and Efficacious

Effective, Efficient, Effectual, and Efficacious Effective, Efficient, Effectual, and Efficacious Effective, Efficient, Effectual, and Efficacious By Maeve Maddox My recent post on cost-effective and cost-efficient garnered a couple of emails from readers who suggested that I might not be aware that effective and efficient have different meanings. Despite the difference between the words effective and efficient when used alone, once the word cost is added to them to produce cost-effective and cost-efficient, the meaning of both compounds appears to be economical or cost-saving. I’d welcome the input of an economist who could provide contexts to show a difference in meaning between the compounds, if one in fact exists. Effective and efficient, on the other hand, belong to a group of adjectives relating to the idea of getting results. Their similarity in meaning is clear in these OED definitions: effective: Powerful in effect; producing a notable effect; effectual. efficient: Productive of effects; effective; adequately operative. effectual: That produces its intended effect, or adequately answers its purpose. efficacious: That produces, or is certain to produce, the intended or appropriate effect; effective. Like the readers who wrote to me, I see a significant difference between effective and efficient. I understand efficient to mean, â€Å"marked by ability to choose and use the most effective and least wasteful means of doing a task or accomplishing a purpose.† For example, burning the house down to get rid of termites would be effective, but not efficient. Here are some examples of suggested usage based on a note in the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus: Use effective to describe something that produces a definite effect or result. Antony proved that he was an effective speaker by rousing the rabble against the men who killed Caesar. Use efficient when the intention is to imply skill and economy of energy in producing the desired result. In less than a year, the new treasurer’s efficient management resulted in the elimination of the organization’s enormous debt. Use effectual to describe something that produces the desired result in a decisive manner. Destroying the bridge proved to be an effectual strategy for stopping the invaders. Use efficacious to describe something that produces the desired effect. Ginger is an efficacious remedy for an upset stomach. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:12 Types of Language7 Patterns of Sentence StructureShore It Up

Metaphysics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Metaphysics - Essay Example Although, eventually Plato's philosophical ideas could have laid the groundwork to influence the formulation of the idea of metaphysics (Walsh 1963, 34), the attempt to explain the ultimate causes and underlying nature of things, matter. The vast array of philosophers and philosophies conceptualizing the ultimate causes and underlying nature of things, familiarly known as metaphysics would most likely believe that the theory was grounded on the basic principles of Socrates rather than on his subsequent followers who had been his students. Obviously, this could be taken along the logic of passing on body of knowledge regarding metaphysics concepts by educators to students. One good way to view Socrates theory on the nature of matter is to see what were the principles developed by his successor along the ultimate causes and underlying nature of things, metaphysics. For example, according to Walsh (1963, 20), Plato expressed the idea that 'wisdom and understanding could come only if men would abandon belief for knowledge'. Obviously, this practice would engage an aggressive separation with what went before as a way of life (Walsh, 1963, 20). It also includes doing away with past behaviors. As well, it meant doing away with traditional views. Additionally, this would call for a battery of restraint.

Criminal justice process for a felony criminal charge filed in a state Research Paper

Criminal justice process for a felony criminal charge filed in a state court - Research Paper Example The Consensus model assumes that when individuals gather to form a society, they naturally come to a basic agreement with regard to shared norms and values. Those individuals whose actions deviate from the established norms and values are considered to pose a threat to the well-being of society, and hence, the society passes laws to control and prevent deviant behavior, thereby setting clear-cut boundaries and agreement on what activities to outlaw and punish as crime. According to the Conflict model, there exists different segments within the society separated by social class, wages, age, race, and there is constant struggle with each other for control of society. The resulting effect is that, the victorious groups exercise their power by codifying their value systems into criminal laws, this being determined by the group that happens to be holding power over the others. There are various types of crimes within the society, and their classification depends on the magnitude of the se riousness, ranging from jaywalking to first-degree murder. Criminal behavior can be put into six categories, namely; violent crime (murder, sexual assault), property crime (burglary, larceny, theft, shoplifting and vandalism), public order crime (prostitution, pornography, alcohol, driving under substance influence), white collar crime (business scams, workplace ethics, fraud), organized crime (terrorism), and high tech crime based on computer technology (cyber crime, hacking). Felony describes several serious crimes such as murder, rape, or burglary punishable by a more stringent sentence than that given for a misdemeanor. The crime is punishable in federal law by death or imprisonment for more than one year (Gaines, Miller, 2008). Criminal justice system This contemporary system is the society’s instrument of social control (the ability of society and its institutions to control, manage, restrain, or direct human behavior). The system seeks to prevent or deter outlawed beha vior by apprehending, adjudicating, and sanctioning the lawbreakers. The criminal justice system has three components; law enforcement agencies, which investigate crimes and apprehend the suspects; the court system, which charges, indicts, tries, and sentences the offenders; and the correctional system, which incapacitates convicted offenders and attempts to aid in their treatment and rehabilitation. The criminal justice agencies are political entities whose structure and functions are lodged within the three arms of any government, that is, the legislative (defines the law and establishes criminal penalties), judicial (interprets existing law and determines constitutionality), and executive (oversees justice agencies operations through budgeting, provision of required directives) (Siegel, 2009). The overall goals of the criminal justice system are to protect the society, maintain order and stability, control crime, investigate crimes and arrest offenders, provide for judicial deter mination of guilt or innocence, set an appropriate sentence for the guilty, and protect the constitutional rights of defendants throughout the criminal justice process (Purpura, 1997). Felony This is a type of sufficiently serious crime that is subjectively punishable by death or a term

Dream Interpretation (Jung vs. Freud) Essay Example for Free

Dream Interpretation (Jung vs. Freud) Essay There is indeed a point where Freud and Jung would agree and disagree as to the interpretation of the particular dream. For Freud dreams is a conscious expression of our fantasies or wishes that is not available when one is awake. It means that for Freud, dreams are meaningful. On the other hand, Jung thinks the reverse of what Freud believed. He considers dreams as expression of the unconscious psychic process. However, obviously they both believed that the images in dreams have a meaning and values of its own for the dreamer. For Freud, the dreamer images are perhaps representing the dreamer’s early childhood wishes or those that one longs for long times but have never have it. Thus, he sees it as a satisfaction of desires. But for Jung, dreams are simply a natural manifestation of the unconscious, which means that it is just natural for any one to dream suggesting that it is possible also to see the image that one regularly is exposed to. In the given dream, both Freud and Jung would agree that dream has a meaning of its own. Freud might agree that most of the images in the dream could be interpreted simply as product of natural manifestation of the unconscious since they are all imaginative except of the image of his mother and the dreamer’s longing for the mother’s warmth. The point of agreement was that the nature of the dream could be interpreted as both a mere product of the unconscious psychic processes of Jung and it can also be interpreted as satisfaction of desires in view of the longing for the mother’s warmness amidst the coldness the dreamer felt. However, they would certainly disagree in the interpretation of its meaning. Jung will certainly interpret this dream simply as natural manifestation of the unconscious in view of the images which are mere fantasies. The image of the mother could just be part of the natural psychic process and nothing more. But Freud will interpret it as a symbol of longings for relationship, perhaps for family which is not accessible in the real life.

Internalism vs Externalism :: essays research papers

Internalism vs. Externalism Knowledge can be achieved either through the justification of a true belief or for the substantive externalist, through a â€Å"natural or law like connection between the truth of what is believed and the person’s belief† (P.135). Suppose a man named George was implanted with a chip at birth, which causes him to utter the time in a rare Russian dialect. His girlfriend Irina, who happens to speak the same Russian dialect, realizes that every time she taps his shoulder, he tells her the time and he is always right. She knows that he is right because she checks her watch. Because she thinks this is cute, she never tells him what it is that he is saying. One day, Irina’s watch breaks but instead of getting it fixed, she just taps George on the shoulder whenever she needs to ask for the time. We may ask ourselves whether it is appropriate to claim that George has knowledge of the time every time he utters it. The answer is NO. Irina has been amused by his Russian utterances and has thus never told him what the words he says mean in English. So if Irina were to ask George what time it was, in English, he would be unable to tell her without looking at a watch or clock. This is due to the fact that when he speaks the time in Russian, his mind is not really referring to the time. The chip implanted in his brain clearly calculates the time on its own, not requiring the use of any of his bodily functions. The only interaction that the chip would have with George is to cause him to utter the appropriate numbers. So, since his brain is not involved in any calculating processes and all he does is utter the time in a foreign language, it is clear that George does not understand what he is saying. Without understand, it is obvious that he cannot form a belief based on what he are sa ying. If the requirement for knowledge is a true belief that is either justified or connected by natural law to a factual truth, then in the absence of a belief, there can be no knowledge. We may also ask ourselves whether Irina knows the time. The answer once again is NO. She believes that she knows the time because whenever she has tapped George on the shoulder, he has given her the correct time.

ETHICS AND THE COLLEGE STUDENT Essay

What is ethics? Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines ethics as morals or principles that Govern a person’s or a group’s behaviors or the branch of knowledge that deals with moral principles. In college students face many ethical dilemmas. This paper will explain the factors that affect a student’s ethical decision making as well as the ethical decision making process. The socialization process is a major influencing factor in our ethical decision making. While we are children, we absorb behaviors and develop our morals and values. Our family is the biggest influence in developing our morals. For instance, proper use of grammar, the importance of education, and strong work ethic are all values that family members help us to develop. Negative influences such as alcohol and drug abuse, poverty, and physical abuse can also shape our behaviors and attitudes. Peer pressure is also an important factor college students face when making ethical choices. In a study done by UCLA, 52% of students said that peer pressure affected ethical choices they made (Yeung and Keup 2009). In addition, the same survey showed how students’ perceptions of peer beliefs and behaviors were the best predictors of their own ethical behavior. Under age drinking, illegal drug use, and casual sex are some dilemmas that students must make choices about when they are attending college. In a review by Harris (1916), he states that underage age drinking had all but disappeared and drug use was unheard of in the early 1900s. But in a survey  taken by UCLA students in 2009 78% of students under the age of 21 admitted to drinking alcohol and 57% of all students admitted to using some type of illegal drug at least once (Yeung and Keup, 2009). In addition these students admitted that peer  pressure was a major determining factor. This information shows that over the last decade underage drinking and drug use has increased amongst college students or they priorities have changed.   Stress also causes students to make unethical decisions. In another study done by UCLA 82% of students would â€Å"consider† plagiarizing, cheating on a test, or lying to a professor when in a stressful situation like finals, mid-terms, or whe n facing academic probation (Yeung and Keup 2009). Social media also plays an important role in college students’ ethical decision making. In the book, â€Å"Philosophy for the Masses: Ethics†, Bruce D. Bruce writes that advertising and media can deceptive and persuasive (Bruce 2009 p.200). Bruce goes on to say that sometimes the media blurs the distinct line between right and wrong and our youth/young adults are most often the ones that have difficulty seeing that line clearly (Bruce 2009 p.200). As stated previously, plagiarism is major dilemma that plagues college students. Stress, peer pressure, and social media are all factors that affect students when deciding whether or not to plagiarize. Young and Keup (2009) noticed that even though many college students thought about plagiarizing when stressed, they felt it was morally wrong. They also discovered that students would rather steal food from the dining facility or even present fake identification to enter a club rather that plagiarize. Most of the students in their study felt condemned or even guilty just thinking about the fact. Time management and the Ethical PEAS will aid students when facing ethical the ethical decision making process (Frame Work of Ethical Decision Making, para 2-3). Students should set aside time for homework, study time, and extracurricular activities. Structure makes it easier  to get things accomplished without the feeling of being rushed. Setting aside study time will give students adequate time to research so they will not feel the need to plagiarize; they will be prepared. Students should also use the Ethical PEAS (Frame Work of Ethical Decision Making, para 2-3). As described in the â€Å"Framework for Ethical Decision-Making† by Montana State University, PEAS is an acronym used when executing the ethical decision making process: P – What is the Problem? E – What is the Evidence? A – Analyze; What guidelines or theories will help me in my process? S – What is the Solution to my problem? Some theories a student can use are (Frame Work of Ethical Decision Making, para 4): The Front Page Newspaper Test Would you be comfortable if your actions were revealed on the front page of the paper? End/Means Test Does and ethical goal (end) justify the way you get to that goal (means)? The Golden Rule Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Utilitarianism What act or rule results in the greatest good for the greatest number? Professional Standards of Conduct Follow the rules, regulations, and codes set before you. In summary, college students must make ethical decisions daily. Stress, peer pressure, drugs and alcohol, the socialization process, and a person’s morals and values all play a part in this process. If students exercise the  ethical decision making process it will make this process much easier. Ethical dilemmas will never go away. So, we must understand ourselves, how a far we are willing to go, and always try to do the right thing. References Bruce, B.D. (2013). Philosophy for the Masses: Ethics. Available from https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/374071. Harris, G. (1916). Ethics of a College Student. The Harvard Theological Review, 9, (2), 190-200. Yeung, P.F., & Keup, J.R. (2009). Ethical Decision Making in College: Choosing Between Right, Wrong, and the Space Between. Retrieved from http://cshe.berkeley.edu/. Montana State University. (2013). Frame Work for Ethical Decision-Making. Retrieved from http://montana.edu/teachlearn/TLResources/docuements.

Element of Law

Malaysian parliament system is derived from the Westminster System which that is the parliamentary system of government that has been adopted in the United Kingdom (U. K. ) as well as many parts of the Britain Empire. Westminster System consist few characteristics. In U. K. , the three organs of the English legal system, which is name as the Legislature, the Executive, and the Judiciary is lead by the sovereign, or the monarch and it also known as a constitutional monarchy. Her Majesty the Queen is the representative of the people and the Head of the State in the same time although the powers of the sovereign have been diluted by the effect of the Bill of Right 1689. Yet, the throne still passes on from generation by generation in the Royal Family by succession. Besides, the supreme power of authority in the Westminster System is hold by the head of state. The head of state can impose and collecting taxes, applying laws and forming treaties in commerce with foreign countries. Read Essay In Westminster Abbey Analysis In an election, the leader of the winning party will directly become the Prime Minister of that country and also the wide power wielded by the head of state or the Prime Minister which is become a characteristics of this system. The Prime Minister also can hold the mandate of the people. The Executive branch will form by the remaining party members and known as the Government for the country. Examples of Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has been appointed as the Sixth Prime Minister in Malaysia since 3rd April 2009, and his leading party National Front are form the Executive branch of Malaysia. The party is obtains the second highest number of votes in the elections are known as the opposition party. This party is function to forming an effective check-and balance mechanism to achieve transparency in the Legislature for the benefit and to prevent abuse of power. Furthermore, they also can compel the resignation of the government when existing government are meet with the motion of no confidence. The Westminster System also characterized by its bicameral system in the Legislature or Parliament, which is means it is consists two Houses- the House of Lords and the House of Commons. The House of Lords is constituted by legal experts in the country such as lawyers and academicians for the usage of draft legislation which is to be implemented in the country whereas the House of Commons is formed by the people who are winning in the election of the country. The new law will be process in these two houses. Moreover, Parliamentary privilege is also a special characteristic in the Westminster System, where members of parliament are given the opportunity to speak and debate freely about the matters in the country in ordinary parliamentary proceedings. Members may not arrest and not legal action will be taken against any statements in Parliament under the Act of Parliamentary Privilege 1987. Hansard is for use to record the parliamentary debates and it is an invaluable source of information. Government Process Malaysia was independent since 1957. Our Malaysia’s government system has furnished institutional ballast and stability to a country. As we known, Malaysia government system and process are mostly like as British ‘Westminster’ and ‘Whitehall’ models. The valid functioning of the Malaysian government system is attributable to the monarchy, and nevertheless to the three main branches of government which is the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary. The doctrine of the separation of these three ‘powers’ is guaranteed by the Federal Constitution. The interplay of every branches of government is testimony to an orderly political process in which the government’s writ is large and regarded as indispensable. Certainly, Malaysia has an authoritative and working government system once the role of police, civil service, and armed forces are taken into account. Undeniably, Malaysia is a country of constitution monarchy. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong or Paramount Ruler is an elective position which signifies national unity and stand for the Malay underpinning of a multi-racial nation. At the federal level, House of Representatives are form by the representation of the people and supported by the Senate. However, in the Malaysian context it is the apportionment of executive responsibility to Minister in the Cabinet that in practice forms the core of the political system whereas the judiciary represent the third pillar of the government system. The head of the executive of government is the Prime minister. The prime minister of Malaysia is the embodiment of elective political power and of the ambition of the body politic. The Prime Minister is the important role for the nation’s political, social fabric and economic of that country. Example of first Prime Minister in Malaysia- Tunku Abdul Rahman, he is the first and only Chief Minister of Federation of Malaya from 1955 to scramble the Independence of Malaya and Malaysia was successful to independence in 1957. Besides, he and his successors have had their own personality and ideas to stamped on the various phases of the country’s development. Political Process In the political process, election of the nation and state levels are to decide the government mandate that contributed to Malaysia’s overall political development. Elections also decide the representation in Parliament, and those parties are won the majority seats in Parliament to forms the government for the five years and that can help to peaceful political change within all political parties. Besides, the manner in which political parties have flourished is conspicuous feature of the Malaysian political process. This is important to the spirit of democratic governance and helps some post-colonial countries to achieve independence and reduced the military dictatorship or single party with supreme power. There are three factors caused the party system need to endured. First, in the past of roots of the colonial, where liberal-democratic ideas were injected into society. Second, the communist threats to the Alliance government following Malaya’s Independence strengthen the domination coalition’s undertaking to democracy. The last is a party system allowed for pluralism in a multi-racial society in order to all races to be one of represented in government. It has been the ability to coalesce competing ethnic demands by mediation between political parties that show Malaysia’s political process was success. In the success, the power-sharing formula forged through the Barisan Nasional to guide the Alliance to won in the eleven general elections since 1957. In the BN, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) was the party that lead to seek for independence but it has share power with the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), Parti Bersatu Sabah, the Sarawak United People’s Party and other BN components parties that has gather the power or ability to win in election to control the Parliament and the various convocation. As we seen, political tensions in Malaysia become serious now. There are many action taken by someone and political party. First, our Malaysian 13th general elections should be take place by March 2013 but our Prime Minister delayed until 03 April 2013 only announced the dissolution of Parliament and general election held on 05 Mei 2013. Many opposition party parliamentary have complain about this issue but they have not right to control the Prime Minister to decide when to dissolve the Parliament even the Judiciary hard to intervene. Besides, the sodomy case of the leader of opposition party, Anwar Ibrahim, has cast a shadow over the whole political process even the case was thrown out of court on 9 January 2012, but not more than 10 days the attorney general had lodged an appeal on this case. Because of this, the political tensions escalate again and the efforts of Prime Minister to reforms have been slander. The range of reforms included the repeal Internal Security Act that allowed for detention without trial has been negates due to the decision to appeal. The decision to appeal against Anwar case allowed the Malaysian and most international observers consider as a politically motivated. If the government had not appealed Anwar’s acquittal, opposition has more power to beat the BN government due to most worrying issues today such as economy, inequality, crime inflation, immigrant workers and corruption. But this all are stop by the existing government and hard to appeal in the court. Opposition party have claim out electoral reforms request. But most of the term in the list of electoral reforms have rejected by the BN government and only one term are adopted in the 13th general election but it has failed and costly to adopted this term. This matter has made the many Malaysian very angry and disappointed on it. This all things are control by the BN government and not one can intervene in this issue and also hard move this issue into court. On my opinion, I think that the separation of power is not functional in Malaysia. This is because all the things are control by the government and Prime Minister even the judge are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong but is advised by Prime Minister that show the Prime Minister has supreme power to decide anything and we have not power or little power to refute it.

Levi Strauss Essays

Levi Strauss Essays Levi Strauss Essay Levi Strauss Essay The inquiry we are asked in this instance survey is whether or non we would purchase portions of stock in Levi Strauss cognizing that its directors are willing to merchandise off some economic efficiency to run harmonizing to their corporate position of what is ethical . On the surface. it appears that Levi Strauss A ; Co. upholds the highest ethical criterions. However. what is ethical to some may non needfully be ethical to others. Like any concern. Levi Strauss strives to place themselves good in the heads of stakeholders and they have maintained their good name and place in the market. The company’s attack to ethical direction is every bit familiar to concern leaders as its denims are to teenagers ( Jackson. Schuler. A ; Werner. 2012. p. [ Page 69 ] ) . Levi Strauss unmistakably has a distinguishable company civilization in that they provide strong guidelines for how their employees should move. Their company values include empathy. originality. unity and bravery. These values direct how employees are to be treated and how they are expected to handle others. Empathy means to hold compassion. originality means to do every attempt to be advanced and alone. unity means to hold strong moral rules. and bravery agencies to be courageous and stand for what you believe is right. These are impressive values for any company to presume! Along with these extraordinary values. Levi Strauss takes an active function in international trade. labour. environmental sustainability. [ and ] nondiscrimination ( Bergh. 2014 ) . Part of the strategic importance of pull offing human resources is fulfilling multiple stakeholders. Levi Strauss is visibly working hard to make that. If you take a expression at their web site. they appear to be one of the most socially responsible companies in the universe! The company is represented as socially responsible leaders in the community. The web site is formatted to do it easy for users to happen a huge sum of information about their ethical patterns and sustainability ( Bergh. 2014. ) . and their denims and other merchandises. good they speak for themselves! At Levi Strauss economic globalisation is an of import factor in the external environment. Labor markets and state civilizations have added to the diverseness in the workplace. They have adapted good to the planetary market place with operations in North America. Latin America. Europe/Middle East and Asia/Pacific ( Around the World. 2013 ) . Levis Strauss has employed a planetary labour force and has had to larn to accommodate to other state civilizations and legal patterns that differ immensely from the 1s here in America. On their web site. I learned that For more than 10 old ages [ Levi Strauss A ; Co. has ] worked closely with the International Labor Organization’s Better Factories Cambodia program†¦ to better the wellbeing of Kampuchean dress workers the following slug on the list reads. Levi Strauss A ; Co. is †¦participating in – and funding – the Better Factories Cambodia one Change Campaign to turn to †¦workers conking in dress factories ( West. 2014 ) . This multi-billion dollar company has been working for more than ten old ages with the ILO Better Factories Cambodia plan. and workers are still conking in their mills? These statements made me inquiry those great values of empathy. unity and bravery I’d antecedently read about. Is this the same company that’s aspiration statement says that it aspires to be a company people can be proud of ? Are their employees in Cambodia excessively hungry to work their displacement and fainting because of i t? Again. what is ethical to some may non be to others. and this is a ground that I would non purchase portions of stock in this company. In Case Exhibit 2. 1 we are shown that one of the standards that are considered when measuring public presentation in their societal audit: the wage and salary degrees and just distribution ( Jackson. Schuler. A ; Werner. 2012. p. [ Page 70 ] ) . However. the non-profit organisation Labor Behind the Label who works to better conditions and empower workers in the planetary garment industry stated that Levi Strauss A ; Co. is among the companies that declined to react to their study. This study asked companies to provide really practical. concrete information about their work in a figure of countries. from preparations to purchasing inducements. and pay benchmarks to transparency issues ( McMullen. 2014 ) . Minimum rewards. normally defined by authoritiess. are set in the context of fierce competition and accordingly frequently fall good below these governments’ own poorness thresholds. Furthermore. a minimal pay is frequently good below what is required for a life pay. and re search indicates that many providers do non even pay this legal minimum ( The Right to a Living. 2014 ) . Levi Strauss declined to react to this study which makes me inquiry one time more what they believe to be ethical. For me. it’s non ethical to put in a company cognizing that they are using people in Cambodia and paying them less than 65 US dollars per month. yet province in their public presentation appraisal standards that they review rewards. salary and just distribution. Levis Strauss isn’t coming near to the cost of populating index in Cambodia. To acquire a pay you can populate from is a basic human right. Does Levi Strauss uphold high ethical criterions? It may look like it on the surface. Something that the directors at Levi Strauss are overlooking is that there are members of society that would see their organisational civilization as immoral and/or unethical. Levi Strauss was one of the innovators to offer insurance benefits to employees’ single domestic spouses. Potential employees and clients may non keep the same positions and happen them non to be a n ethically sound company. Additionally. Levi Strauss’ broad employment schemes and disobedience to appraise about rewards may do some people non to seek employment with their company or buy their merchandises. As we learned from the text. another of import portion of the HR function is to help the company in gaining and prolonging a competitory advantage. With all the competition in the market. clients that portion similar conservative positions may take to purchase their denims from other companies. Additionally. consumers may take to speak about these issues on societal media which could potentially make an unwanted image in the eyes of stakeholders. Last. there are more than a few viing companies out at that place. I would urge that Levi Strauss become more crystalline about take parting in the following study that Labor Behind the Label invites them to take part in. Rather than congregating with the ILO for another ten old ages. possibly they can make something to better the state of affairs in the ir Kampuchean mills like addition the $ 5/month cost of populating addition to $ 20/month or something that is more realistic. Management demands to be continually witting of the external environment in order to stay competitory. Most investors would be smart to put in this company if they went public because of their great public image. their topographic point in the market. the length of service of the company and the fact that they look great on paper. Equally far as Human Resources Management goes. it appears that the HR Triad at Levi Strauss A ; Co. has a good apprehension of the altering external and internal environments and have developed their human resources theoretical account with these environments in head. Would I purchase portions of this company? Not at all. Not merely do they non adhere to what I see as ethical behaviour. they are doing a ton of money off the dorsums of hapless people in other states and runing under the pretense of being a socially responsible company. Plants Cited Around the World. ( 2013 ) . Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //global. Matthew. com/ Bergh. C. ( 2014 ) . Who We Are. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. levistrauss. com/who-we-are/ # message-from-the-ceo/ Jackson. S. E. . Schuler. R. S. . A ; Werner. S. ( 2012 ) . Chapter 2 [ Case Study ] . In Pull offing human resources ( 11th erectile dysfunction. . p. 69. 70 ) . Mason. Ohio: South Western/ Cengage Learning. McMullen. A. ( 2014 ) . Tailored Wages UK – Report. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from Www. LabourBehindTheLabel. org web site: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. labourbehindthelabel. org/campaigns/itemlist/category/294-report The study profiles 40 companies on the extent to which their actions are holding a positive existent consequence on workers’ rewards in garment mills. The Right to a Living Wage. ( 2014 ) . Retrieved September 11. 2014. from Www. LabourBehindTheLabel. org web site: hypertext transfer protocol: //www. labourbehindthelabel. org/ issues/item/736-wages West. A. ( 2014. July 25 ) . Agents of Sustainable Change. Retrieved September 11. 2014. from hypertext transfer protocol: //www. levistrauss. com/unzipped-blog/2012/10/ one-link-our-supply-chain-Cambodia/

What Harvards Asian Admissions Lawsuit Reveals About How You Should Approach College Applications

What Harvard's Asian Admissions Lawsuit Reveals About How You Should Approach College Applications SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips The hottest news in college admissions these days is the release of documents from thelawsuit filed against Harvard University for unfair admissions practices against Asian-Americans. For the first time in recent memory, an elite institution's opaque admissions practices have been laid bare. More than 90,000 pages of internal Harvard admissions documents have been made available for use in the lawsuit, with excerpts made publicly available in court filings. In this article, I'll summarize what this lawsuit is about and what we learned about how top-tier schools like Harvard choose which students to accept. (Spoiler: most of it confirms what I wrote about in my How to Get Into Harvard guide. If you haven't read that, I suggest you open it in a tab right now, and read it after you finish this article). Most importantly, we'll cover what this means for how YOU should be preparing for college admissions. Caveats: Since this lawsuit (and admissions in general) has a lot to do about race, I'll talk about race explicitly here, understanding that these are triggering topics for many people. I suggest trying to focus pragmatically on what you can get out of these news. I'm a Harvard alum and also Asian-American, which depending on your personal viewpoint could mean I'm biased in any direction. Generally, I don't have enough information to have a strong opinion about the merits of the lawsuit. As I'll explain below though, my opinion about this lawsuit doesn't matter since we're really looking at the admissions data and what it means for your acceptance rates into Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, etc. What the Harvard Admissions Lawsuit is About First, a very simplistic introduction. A subset of Asian-Americans are frustrated that they are possibly discriminated against in college admissions. More specifically, assuming the same academic achievements - SAT/ACT scores, coursework, and grades - Asians feel they are less likely to be admitted than white, black, and Hispanic applicants. Disgruntled college applicant Michael Wangis a representative example. Despite being 2nd in his high school class, having a 36 ACT score, and several national-level awards, he was rejected by 6 of 7 Ivy League colleges in 2015. "I saw people less qualified than me get better offers...what more could I have done to get into your college? Was it based on race?" Spotting an opportunity, Edward Blum of the Project on Fair Representation pushed a lawsuit against Harvard. The lawsuit alleges that: "holistic admissions" is actually a cover to practice racial discrimination Asian-Americans are discriminated against in admissions - meaning, lower admissions rates controlling for qualifications. In their words, "an Asian-American with a 25% chance of admission would have a 35% chance if he were white, a 75% chance if he were Hispanic, and a 95% chance if he were African American." the % of Asian-Americans in Harvard's student class has stayed the same (~20%) despite increases in the qualifications of Asians, suggesting a strict racial quota This echoes controversy in the 1920s withHarvard's discrimination against Jewish candidates. Now, why should the public care what a private institution like Harvard does? Because it receives federal funding (e.g. in research grants). And Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964prohibits racial discrimination in recipients of federal financial assistance. (If you're interested in the legal aspects of this case,here's an insightful analysis.) While Harvard is the sole defendant in the lawsuit, this is really an attack on admissions practices for ALL top-tier colleges like Princeton, Yale, and Stanford. Harvard, given its reputation and size, is just the juiciest target. In response, Harvard generally defends its admissions practices as promoting diversity, promoting "opportunities to engage with and learn from classmates who come from widely different backgrounds and circumstances...which would leave students ill prepared to contribute to and lead in our diverse and interconnected nation and world." "A significant reduction in the number of African-American and Hispanic students on campus would inhibit...the benefits of a diverse student body and significantly undermine [Harvard's] educational mission." How You Feel About This Doesn't Really Matter for Admissions Results Like most matters dealing with race, this is controversial with a wide spectrum of opinions.You might think Harvard is totally in the right in how it does admissions. Or you might think that discrimination really is happening and the system needs to change. Whatever you believe, the pragmatic question is this - what does this mean for you and YOUR college applications? If you or your child are in high school, you're relatively powerless to change the system in the time that it matters for you, no matter what you believe. The first decision point for you is whether you want to play the college admissions game or not. In the extreme, this controversy might sound so outrageous to you that you become a conscientious objector, and you don't want to support the college admissions machine. This might mean you refuse to apply to possibly discriminatory schools. If so, all the power to you. But most likely, you're likely not in this group. You still want to get into the best college you can because of its impact on your future. This means that you need to deal with whatever disadvantage you're dealt, and make the most of it.You need to learn the rules of the college admissions game, andyou need to prepare yourself for the best chance of success. That's what the rest of this article is about. I'm not going to opine on the morals of the situation, but rather objectively talk about how college admissions at places like Harvard works, and what it means for you. What the Lawsuit Has Revealed About the Harvard Admissions Process I'll cut to the chase. Released legal documents show for the first time that Harvard application readers rate each applicant on a score of 1-6 on these categories: Academic Extracurricular Athletic Personal Recommendation letters (2 teachers, counselor) Alumni (interview) personal and Overall rating 1 is the highest possible score. Each score can also have a "+" or "-", just like A+/A- grades. We'll explain in a second how you get 1's on these categories, but I want to focus on the big picture for now. From my reading of the legal documents, it seems like the first 4 factors are really the most heavily considered (since they're mentioned most often), with the recommendation letter and alumni ratings used as supplementary factors. All of these ratings are combined by the application reader in an Overall rating, again from 1 to 6. This Overall rating is CRITICAL for admissions, as we'll discuss below. The Overall rating is "not a formula" and doesn't involve adding up other ratings. It's a holistic grade. Harvard instructs readers to assign the score by "stepping back and taking all the factors into account and then assigning that Overall rating." (In reality, I suspect the grade is close to your top 2 scores - you can get a 1 on academic and personal and a 4 on athletic, and the 4 won't bring down your total score.) From released legal filings, here's a description of what the overall ratings mean: 1. Tops for admission: Exceptional - a clear admit with very strong objective andsubjective support (90+% admission). 2. Strong credentials but not quite tops (50-90% admission). 3. Solid contender: An applicant with good credentials and support (20-40%admission). 4. Neutral: Respectable credentials. 5. Negative: Credentials are generally below those of other candidates. 6. Unread. The application is given to two readers to give ratings. Finally, a third, usually more experienced reader adjusts the ratings for accuracy. In one example, the first reader gave a student a 1, but the third reader adjusted it downward to a 2+. How strongly does your Overall rating correlate with your admission rate? VERY strongly. Here's a quote from legal documents: "Those who have an Overall score of 3- or worse are almost always rejected. Those who receive an Overall rating of a 1 are always accepted." What are your chances of admission depending on your Overall score? Here's more detail on admissions rates for all domestic applicants across 6 years, in the Classes of 2014 to 2019. This dataset includes only regular decision students (Harvard didn't have early action in years 2014-2015) and excludes special situations (athletes, legacy, Dean's list, faculty/staff kids) and international applicants. Rating Population Population % Admit % Admitted Number 3 56825 47.23% 0.02% 9 3 44472 36.96% 2.35% 1047 3+ 14289 11.88% 9.14% 1306 2+/2/2- 4674 3.88% 65.15% 3045 1 50 0.04% 100.00% 50 To explain the columns: Population: number of applicants with that rating Population %: % of total applicants who have that rating Admit %: % of applicants with that rating who were admitted Admitted Number: number of applicants with that rating who were admitted Through all of this, remember that the total admissions rate is around 6%. Anytime you can beat this number, you have a better shot at getting in. Here are the takeaways: If you get an Overall score of 1, you have guaranteed admission. However, this is very rare - with 30,000 applicants in a year, you can expect only 12 students to get this score. These are truly exceptional people who stand out even among the incoming class. If you get a score of 2+/2/2-, you have a 65% chance of getting in.Furthermore, this comprises the top 3.9% of all applicants - in a group of 30,000 applicants, 1,164 will get a 2 score. These are much better chancesthan average, and much more realistic than a score of 1 for us mortals. I wish they separated out the 2+/2/2- from each other, but this wasn't available. If you get a score of 3+, you start getting into the crapshoot.These get into the well-rounded, but not stand-out students. Even though you're still in the top 15% of all applicants, your admissions rate is just 9%, a bit above the overall average. Furthermore, you're competing against 3,000 other students. If you get a score of 3, you're in the average. Average is bad for Harvard admissions.Your admission rate drops down to 2.4% (just 1 out of 40 people in this group get in). If you get a score of 3- or below, you have nearly zero chance of getting admitted.This is also the most common category to fall into - nearly half of all applicants score a 3- or below. This strongly confirms my framework of admissions for world-class students(from my How to Get Into Harvard guide). The 6% admissions rate is just an average, and it doesn't apply to everyone - the stronger your application, the more likely you are to be admitted. For a select group of ~1,000 students per year, their admission is MUCH better than the average admissions rate.These students are likely to be standouts on a national or international level, not just on a state or regional level. Again, I want to emphasize, this is likely more or less what happens at all elite institutions - including Princeton, Stanford, and Yale. The exact rating scales and criteria may differ, butthis type of grading is a very common model in college admissions. Simplifying your application into a score allows for faster comparisons across thousands of applicants. If you want to get into Harvard, Princeton, or other top-tier schools, you need to try to get into that select top 5% of applicants, with a 2 score. You do NOT want to be part of the masses in the 3+ and below group - this is where the crapshoot happens, and the crapshoot is a terrible place to be. Want to get into Harvard or your personal top choice college? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. More Data, for the Data Nerds Here's the table again, this time including early action applicants and special situations (roughly 3,000 per year): Rating Population Population % Admit % Admitted Number 3 61707 44.43% 0.13% 79 3 51483 37.07% 3.97% 2042 3+ 18131 13.06% 13.40% 2429 2+/2/2- 7466 5.38% 74.00% 5525 1 94 0.07% 100.00% 94 The conclusions don't strongly change. By adding in early action applicants (who tend to be better qualified than regular decision ones), you see a higher % of 1 and 2 ratings.In a year with 30,000 applicants, there are 21 students with a 1 rating, and 1,614 students with a 2 rating. We can now take this chart, subtract the Regular Decision students chart further up, and see the admission rates for only early action applicants and special situation students(athletes, legacy, Dean's list, faculty/staff kids): Rating Population Population % Admit % Admitted Number 3 4882 26.29% 1.43% 70 3 7011 37.75% 14.19% 995 3+ 3842 20.69% 29.23% 1123 2+/2/2- 2792 15.03% 88.83% 2480 1 44 0.24% 100.00% 44 A big question on many students' minds is - how much does applying early improve my chances of admission, with the same application? Some things seem clear: The (early action + special situation) population gets much better ratings as a population. 15% of the (EA + SS) pool gets 2 ratings compared to 4% in regular decision, and 20% of (EA + SS) gets 3+ compared to 12% in regular decision. This heavily suggests to me that the early action pool contains more talented students than the regular decision pool. Much of the higher admission rate for early action has to do with self-selection of more talented students.. For the same rating, the admission rate is higher in (EA + SS) than regular decision. For example, a 3+ has an admit rate of 29%, compared to 9% in regular decision. Some part of this is due to the early action effect - because of signaling early interest and commitment to the school, you likely do get a small admissions boost by applying early. However, much of this I believe is still due to the special population. Recruited athletes might tend to get an overall 3+ rating, for instance, but get a huge advantage by being recruited. Likewise, legacy students may tend to apply early AND get higher admissions rates no matter when they apply, which skews the early numbers up. Ideally we'd get the admission rate for the same regular applicants, controlling for special status and application strength. But the data don't go detailed enough to let us do that. For fun, here are statistics on the # of applicants and admit rate for early action as compared to regular decision: Regular Decision Regular Applicant Special Circumstances Year Applicants Admits Admit Rate Applicants Admits Admit Rate 2014 23,176 1,471 6.30% 1,200 515 42.90% 2015 27,016 1,408 5.20% 1,244 515 41.40% 2016 24,968 857 3.40% 728 155 21.30% 2017 22,963 754 3.30% 641 116 18.10% 2018 22,799 709 3.10% 591 108 18.30% 2019 24,134 690 2.90% 623 100 16.10% Early Action Regular Applicant Special Circumstances Year Applicants Admits Admit Rate Applicants Admits Admit Rate 2014 0 0 0 2015 0 0 0 2016 2,982 458 15.40% 600 367 61.20% 2017 3,448 487 14.10% 663 460 69.40% 2018 3,272 520 15.90% 686 451 65.70% 2019 4,238 524 12.40% 755 467 61.90% A few takeaways: for regular applicants, the early action admission rate is higher than the regular decision rate - for class of 2019, it was 12.4% vs 2.9%. a large part of this is student qualification - better students tend to apply earlier. a minor part of this is signaling your interest - Harvard practices Restrictive Early Action (as do Yale, Princeton, and Stanford), meaning you can apply only to Harvard early action. Thus Harvard knows you're more likely committed to Harvard, and since they want to protect their yield rate, this increases admission rate a bit. so while you might get a slight advantage from applying early through signaling interest, it won't be as large a boost as the early action admit rate suggests. special circumstances students get a HUGE advantage over regular applicants. athletes are admitted at 86%. This group makes up about 230 students per year. (Note this means recruited varsity athletes, not just having athletics as an extracurricular.) legacy students are admitted at 33.6%. This group makes up about 774 students per year. (Note these students are usually highly qualified in their own right - they may just get a second look and slightly preferable treatment.) dean and director's interest list are at 42%. (There seem to be no particular criteria for being included on this list, but they include applicants "encountered at recruiting events" and applicants "related to donors to Harvard." I believe this is not mutually exclusive with the other groups - ie you can be a legacy athlete on the dean's list.) If you're reading this, you're most likely not a special circumstances student (nor was I). So you have to make up for it with a world-class application. Matthias Neugebauer/Flickr How Do You Earn a *1* in Each Rating? Now the critical question - what do you have to do to earn a 1 in the Academic, Extracurricular, Athletic, and Personal ratings? Luckily, as we learned fromfilings for the lawsuit, Harvard readers are given a rubric to grade applicants on. Remember that the Overall Rating is a holistic combination of the ratings, not a strict average. I would believe that if you earn a 1 in Academic and Personal ratings, you're likely to get a 2 or above in Overall rating. You only need to be world-class in one way, with a Spike. Academic Rating: 1. Summa potential. Genuine scholar; near-perfect scores and grades (in most cases) combined with unusual creativity and possible evidence of original scholarship. 2. Magna potential: Excellent student with superb grades and mid-to high-700 scores (33+ ACT). 3. Cum laude potential: Very good student with excellent grades and mid-600 to low-700 scores (29 to 32 ACT). 4. Adequate preparation. Respectable grades and low-to mid-600 scores (26 to 29) ACT). 5. Marginal potential. Modest grades and 500 scores (25 and below ACT). 6. Achievement or motivation marginal or worse. This confirms what we already know - getting perfect grades and test scores is not impressive enough to be world-class in academics. As the Harvard Interviewer Handbook says elsewhere, "more than presenting the Committee with superior testing and strong academic records...the applicant admitted primarily for unusual intelligence also presents compelling evidence of creativity and originality." (emphasis mine) Legal documents reveal some useful details: out of 42,749 applicants for Class of 2022, 8,000 had perfect GPAs 625 had a perfect score on ACT; 361 had a perfect 2400 on SAT 3,500 had perfect SAT math; 2,700 had perfect SAT verbal. There are just too many students who perform at the top 1% of academics. With 4 million high school students per year, 1% is 40,000 students! Within academic-type applicants, Harvard is looking for the leading future scholars.To get a 1 in this rating requires demonstration of this in high school, likely through original research that is vetted favorably by a Harvard faculty member. As Harvard Dean of Admissions William Fitzsimmons said, "Several hundred of our admittedstudents each year have the kind of stunning academic credentials- well beyond test scores and grades- that our faculty believe place them among the best potential scholars of their generation. ..." For this, it's not enough just to do research - thousands of students do this every year. It might not be sufficient either to be a minor co-author on a paper. Ideally, you need to show original contributions and ideas, corroborated by your research supervisor (e.g. in a supplementary recommendation). You might also be nationally-ranked in a research competition like Intel ISEFor Regeneron STS. Extracurricular Rating: 1. Unusual strength in one or more areas. Possible national-level achievement or professional experience. A potential major contributor at Harvard. Truly unusual achievement. 2. Strong secondary school contribution in one or more areas such as class president, newspaper editor, etc. Local or regional recognition; major accomplishment(s).[in another filing]: "Significant school, and possibly regional accomplishments: for example, an applicant who was the student body president or captain of the debate team and the leader of multiple additional clubs." 3. Solid participation but without special distinction. (Upgrade 3+ to 2- in some cases if the e/c is particularly extensive and substantive.) 4. Little or no participation. 5. Substantial activity outside of conventional EC participation such as family commitments or term-time work (could be included with other e/c to boost the rating or left as a "5" if it is more representative of the student's commitment). 6. Special circumstances limit or prevent participation (e.g. a physical condition). 2: " 5: "Family responsibilities at home or very limited resources that make it unlikely that the applicant could participate in extracurricular or other activities." A 2 rating focuses on "school andregional accomplishments." To put it bluntly: big fish in a little pond. Remember - there are over 37,000 high schools in the country. Not every school has the same extracurriculars, but just think - in the US every year, there are at least 20,000 student body presidents (and vice presidents, treasurers, etc.); 10,000 captains of the debate team; 50,000 captains of sports teams; 100,000 presidents of clubs. There are a LOT of local achievers. To be world-class, you have to do something that is notable on the national or international scale. This doesn't necessarily mean that you literally need to build an international-level organization with branch offices in Paris. The point is that among all the applicants, your achievements stand out on the national stage - for instance, building a mobile app with hundreds of thousands of active users is likely pretty nationally distinctive. Athletic Rating: This is relatively more straightforward: 1. Unusually strong prospect for varsity sports at Harvard, desired by Harvard coaches. 2. Strong secondary school contribution in one or more areas; possible leadership role(s). 3. Active participation. 4. Little or no interest. 5. Substantial activity outside of conventional EC participation such as family commitments or term-time work (could be included with other e/c to boost the rating or left as a "5" if it is more representative of the student's commitment). 6. Physical condition prevents significant activity. 1 is for recruited varsity athletes. Personally, I was probably a 4 - I got an A in PE and that's it. And that was OK - Harvard stillwanted me! Again, it's not about being well-rounded, it's about having a spikethat makes you world-class. Personal Rating: Here it gets a bit tricky. Here are a few statements in the legal documents that I pulled out: The personal rating "summarizes the applicant's personal qualities based on all aspects of the application, including essays, letters of recommendation, the alumni interview report, personal and family hardship, and any other relevant information in the application." Characteristics include "applicant's humor, sensitivity, grit, leadership, integrity, helpfulness, courage, kindness," whether the person is an "attractive person to be with" and is "widely respected." This is a more subjective category than the other 3 ratings. It's based on the student's background, how the student presents herself (in the essays and interview), and how others perceive the student (recommendations). Note that just like having an Academic Spike, it's possible to have a Personal Spike too. A student might get a Personal rating of 1 (say, for having overcome tremendous difficulties and showing outstanding personal character), while getting non-1 scores for Academic, Extracurricular, and Athletic scores. And this might be sufficient to get the student admitted (though 1's in Personal are rarer than in the other categories). Here's the rubric description, which is not super helpful except for the bottom ratings: 1: Outstanding 2: Very Strong 3: Generally Positive 4: Bland or somewhat negative or immature 5: Questionable personal qualities 6: Worrisome personal qualities This is why the interview is important - no matter how much of a genius you are, Harvard doesn't want jerks in its community. And if you can't suppress being a jerk for an hour-long interview, you certainly won't behave well for 4 years of college. It's also bad to be "bland" - interviewers want to see some sort of spark or joie de vivre, partlysince this is indicative of passion and thus future impact on the world. Nearly all applicants who are admitted went through an interview - as the document says, "those who do not interview are rarely admitted." (FYI: The personal rating is where the lawsuit alleges Asian-Americans are punished. Despite having higher academic and extracurricular scores than any other racial group, Asians received the lowest score of any racial group on personal rating from Harvard admissions staff.) What % of Students Get What Scores? Now that you understand what it takes to get these scores, what % of students actually get these scores? We'll show you the data below, but here are some trends to keep in mind: getting a 1 in even just one section is rare (1% of applicants get it) if you get a 1 in any section, your chances of admission are between 50-70%. getting a 2 in any single section is much more common (20-40%) with a much lower chance of admission (between 12-26%) (Source) Academic Rating Academic Rating 5 4 3 2 1 Applicants 5969 17690 58061 60468 650 % of Population 4.2% 12.4% 40.6% 42.3% 0.5% Admitted 4 175 2429 7500 450 Admit rate 0.1% 1.0% 4.2% 12.4% 69.2% Extracurricular Rating Extracurricular Rating 5 4 3 2 1 Applicants 952 4639 102784 34038 425 % of Population 0.7% 3.2% 72.0% 23.8% 0.3% Admitted 52 187 3957 6147 215 Admit rate 5.5% 4.0% 3.8% 18.1% 50.6% Personal Rating Personal Rating 5 4 3 2 1 Applicants 24 604 112513 29660 37 % of Population 0.0% 0.4% 78.8% 20.8% 0.0% Admitted 0 1 2846 7687 24 Admit rate 0.0% 0.2% 2.5% 25.9% 64.9% Some interesting things to note: Extracurricular and Personal Ratings have a huge mass of people at 3 (above 70%). Per the rubric above, this likely means: their extracurriculars weren't anything special - school-level participation without any major distinction their personal qualities were positive but not extremely strong - of the "top 25%" of the class type Academic Ratings have a smoother spread, with roughly 40% scoring both 2 and 3. Letter of Recommendation Rating: Legal filings show the following scoring for "School Support," with separate ratings for teachers 1, 2, and counselor. 1. Strikingly unusual support. "The best ever," "one of the best in x years," truly over the top. 2. Very strong support. "One of the best" or "the best this year." 3. Above average positive support. 4. Somewhat neutral or slightly negative. 5. Negative or worrisome report. 6. Neither the transcript nor prose is in the folder. 8. Placeholder. 9. Transcript only. No SSR prose. This largely matches what's on the Common App teacher recommendation form: As a reminder, "Top Few" is shorthand for "One of the top few encountered in my career." I'm going to guess that a 1 rating for recommendation letter means all of the below: recommenders rated student as "Top Few" in most categories recommenders are credible and have seen a lot of students (i.e., not rookie teachers) the reader may be familiar with the recommender's historical quality of recommendation the school is a top-tier school (so the student has tough competition for being outstanding) Overall Rating: Let's come back to the Overall Rating, because the lawsuit revealed something interesting about well-rounded students: "Harvard readers use the label 'Standard Strong' to characterize an application that had strong qualities but not strong enough to merit admission." For example, an admissions reader wrote of one Standard Strong student (who was Asian): "busy and bright" but"will need to fight it out with many similar to him." This reminds me of the classic problem with well-rounded students. They're definitely not off-putting - but they're not particularly impressive either.Like thousands of toy balls in a bargain bin, they all look the same.This is where the crapshoot is - the committee has to tear their hair out choosing the last 500 applicants among 10,000 qualified ones. Don't know how to make your college application world-class? We can help. PrepScholar Admissions is the world's best admissions consulting service. We combine world-class admissions counselors with our data-driven, proprietary admissions strategies. We've overseen thousands of students get into their top choice schools, from state colleges to the Ivy League. Learn more about PrepScholar Admissions to maximize your chance of getting in. What Do You Do With This Information? Let's put it all together. The Harvard lawsuit has revealed these takeaways about top-tier college admissions: applicants are scored based on how impressive their academic, extracurricular, athletic, and personal achievements are the highest scores are reserved for people who are world-class, distinguishing themselves as some of the top in the nation (or even the world) in what they do the overall rating is NOT an average of all your scores. Most likely, it's weighted toward your most impressive achievement. Therefore, you don't need to worry about being very well-rounded. the higher the score you get, the higher your chance of admission. At Harvard, the average admissions rate is 5% to 6%. But students getting the highest score of 1 have a 100% admission rate; students getting 2+/2/2- have a 70% admission rate personal qualities are important and cannot be ignored. Ideally you are likable, charismatic, honest, kind, and funny - and this shows in your essays, your recommendation letters, and interviews. All of this means that as you become a stronger world-class applicant, your chances of admission become less like a random lottery. You need to spend LESS time trying to be well-rounded, trying to cover all your bases. If you try to be an equally good athlete, musician, debater, scientist, and volunteer all at once, you will be mediocre at them all. Especially if you don't actually enjoy doing some of these activities. There are other people who focus on their area of greatest talent and interest, who will achieve far more than you can. If you want to increase your chances of getting into Harvard, you need to develop a Spike. For a deep dive into how to do this, read myHow to Get Into Harvard guide. I guarantee you'll learn something new that will change how you prepare your college apps. Want to improve your SAT score by 160 points or your ACT score by 4 points?We've written a guide for each test about the top 5 strategies you must be using to have a shot at improving your score. Download it for free now: