More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/deconstructing-college-admissions-rat-race.

America's elite colleges and universities spend millions of dollars to generate thousands of applicants, the vast majority of whom they reject. High school students – and their parents – work hard to gain entry to such institutions, and can be devastated by the rejection. Is there a purpose to this rat race? What values are implicit in the American college admissions process? John and Ken offer admission to Mitchell Stevens from Stanford's School of Education, author of "Creating A Class: College Admissions and the Education of Elites," for a program recorded with an audience of high school students in Palo Alto, California.