The rich are learning how to look less rich on their children’s college applications

We’ve read the stories about private jets ferrying families from one college campus to another.

One of our competitors has reportedly offered a $300,000, four-day tour per student-and-parent pair, taking seven such pairs to seven universities as part of what it calls the “ Elevation Experience .” The itinerary promises a Gulfstream G650, private tarmac pickups, chauffeured cars, Four Seasons hotels, VIP concierge service, curated dining, and even apparently designer luggage.

The company describes the exclusive experience as providing families with a “strategic edge” in college admissions.

Read that description and one can’t help but ask: Who, exactly, is this for? I ask as a former University of Pennsylvania admissions officer who now serves as a senior admissions consultant at Ivy Coach .

Over the last 35 years, our firm has worked with plenty of wealthy families, including the children of titans of industry, heads of state, and the glitterati.

We’ve even been written about for commanding seven-figure fees to pursue admission to universities with single-digit acceptance rates.

In other words, we know wealthy families.

And our clients generally don’t want their children’s privilege put on display.

They don’t want their children traveling with six other student-parent pairs in a $300,000-per-family private-jet caravan, only to descend on campus together and risk being seen by admissions officers or, heaven forbid, regular college students.

They understand something the college admissions industry has taken decades to learn and it’s that wealth can open doors, but flaunting it can slam them shut.

That wasn’t always obvious.

Two decades ago, applications routinely contained clues that could make admissions officers wince.

A student’s Costa Rica “service trip” might cost more than an admissions officer’s annual salary.

Students “summered” in the Hamptons, apparently because even vacation needed to make the résumé.