What explains the scarcity of low-income students at America’s selective colleges? The short answer is that very few apply. As William Bowen, Martin Kurzweil, and Eugene Tobin write in their book Equity and Excellence in American Higher Education, students from low-income families tend early in life to fall behind in “cognitive skills, motivation, expectations…and practical knowledge about the college admissions process.” Most lose hope of attending a top college long before the competition formally begins.
