n seminary and essays are factored in. I think what is frustrating that it doesn't seem all of the strong candidates get in (with the assumption that it is so that some of the weaker ones do). I would be in favor of it being completely merit-based, including some of the qualitative considerations. Of course, it is possible that BYU admissions feels they already do that and that the essays, for example, are just much more highly weighted than we know.

It's also not just that easy. For example, grades or class-rankings at one school can mean something completely different at another one. I've always been flabbergasted that BYU gives scholarships based on straight ACT-grade rankings with no factoring of course/school difficulty.