College admissions case study: the Flutie Effect and the University of Florida

February 20, 11:05 AMCollege Admissions ExaminerLauren Starkey

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Never heard of the Flutie Effect? Here’s a little history: in 1984 during a Boston College v. Miami football game, quarterback Doug Flutie threw a Hail Mary pass to win the game, and Boston College saw its applications rise about 30 percent in the following two years. Since then, admissions officials around the country believed in the “Flutie Effect”—the better a school’s sports teams perform during high-profile games, the more applications they’ll get.

Now, there’s evidence to show that the Effect is not simply a higher education Urban Legend.  Researchers Jaren Pope, assistant professor in applied economics at Virginia Tech, and his brother Devin, assistant professor of Operations and Information Management at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School say they’ve been able to quantify it. “College administrators have known about this for a while, but I think this study helps to pin down what the average effects are,” said Jaren.

Specifically, their study, which is to be published in the Southern Journal of Economics, found that winning the NCAA football or men's basketball title gave schools an application increase of about 8 percent, and success in other high-profile games also produced increases, albeit smaller ones.

The Flutie Effect is especially relevant this year. As I’ve discussed in a previous column, state schools are not the safeties they once were. As tuition increases and the economy puts the squeeze on family finances, more students are applying to less expensive public universities. Now add in the Effect: the University of Florida is not just a state school. It’s the state school that captured of both the NCAA basketball and football titles last year. Expect the competition for admission to be stiffer than it’s ever been.

If you’re applying to college in the fall, keep a close eye on the 2009 NCAA basketball championships next month. Whoever wins can expect application numbers, and therefore admissions standards, to rise accordingly. Thanks, Doug.