Another recommendation: Malcolm Gladwell's review of a book by Jerome Karabel on admission to Harvard (& Co.). It made me hate the Ivy League more than ever. This in particular stayed with me:

And the most important category? That mysterious index of “personal” qualities. According to Harvard’s own analysis, the personal rating was a better predictor of admission than the academic rating… When the Office of Civil Rights at the federal education department investigated Harvard in the nineteen-eighties, they found handwritten notes scribbled in the margins of various candidates’ files… One application—and at this point you can almost hear it going to the bottom of the pile—was notated, “Short with big ears.”

"Short with big ears" — I bet he had a big, goofy smile too, and was nervous but eager to have a serious conversation. And all the interviewer could think was "short with big ears."

The article is riveting.