From Hollywood families to Silicon Valley hedge fund managers, Netflix’s newly released documentary, Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal, shines a light on the 2019 college admissions scandal in which wealthy figures were charged with buying their way into elite colleges and institutions. Through donations and bribery, parents were able to bypass the authority of admissions officers and even the stress-inducing process of college admissions

Wealthy families around the world are turning to a new way of getting into college, bribery. Prominent figures such as Douglas Hodge, Felicity Huffman, and Lori Loughlin were caught up in a scandal because of paying large sums of money to university officials in order to gain admission. Hodge Himself shelled out more than $800,000 to Georgetown University and USC (University of Southern California) and over $30 million to a Cambodian orphanage and California charter school.

“You [Hodge] need to pay a significant and conspicuous price for unconscionable, egregious criminal conduct” says Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton; “from the blatant misuse of your good fortunes” and abuse of power, Groton states we must set an example to deter others in similar standings from abusing the same system.

From a hedge fund manager to actress, all were helped by William Singer, the mastermind behind many of these cases and who facilitated the different aspects of what Singer calls “the side-door.” William Singer managed and facilitated the admission of many students, one of his many accomplices include Mark Riddell, a Harvard University graduate. Having been paid $10,000 for each exam, he proctored and corrected for Singer’s clients.

Katie Reilly, a reporter for TIME, says Riddell was caught up in “a cautionary tale of helicopter parenting taken to its illegal extremes” after having his first child. Riddel l was able to get scores for Singer not by having insider knowledge, but rather because he was smart enough to consistently achieve these scores on his own.

Jon Reider, a former Stanford admissions officer, states that he “would like colleges to eliminate early decision applications and stop giving an edge to athletes and legacy applicants.” Doing this would essentially put an end to the process Singer managed to exploit for so many years and stop giving wealthy legacy students an unfair advantage compared to those whose parents didn’t have the opportunity to attend top universities and colleges.

Senior Mira Deshpande said in an interview, “I don’t know many of the specifics about the scandal but I think it’s upsetting to think about that you could possibly get rejected from a school because someone essentially bought your spot”. Seniors across the world share similar feelings as many witnessed the details of the scandal unfold. Beyond simply college admissions, the wealthy are able to manipulate much of the world through the use of their wealth and power.