I suspect that parental assistance on college admission essays has happened for decades. However, with the hyper-competitiveness to get one of a very limited number of admission slots, some parents (wanting to give their kids what they want, not what they need) are doing anything to help them. The modern "helicopter parent" is the stereotype of this type of parent.
The current application process is a bit archaic. Clearly, with the advent of the Internet and the quick and easy exchange of information, colleges should ask for portfolios of sample, graded school work. These portfolios should supplement applications and may be referenced when there's a need to compare the relative quality of two seemingly equal candidates or any question about the authenticity of the a student's application (including essay).
(On a side note, I'm surprised that more software developers don't keep and share their own portfolios of sample work for prospective clients/employers. A representative body of a person's work is clearly more of an indicator of the quality and skill of a person than any statements/certifications on a C.V. or résumé could possibly be.)
I think that portfolio's of software get messy in exactly the same way that joint research papers get messy: how do you figure out who did the work?
That said, I think you're right that in a large body of work you see the little eddies in the programmers mind, and thats an evaluative tool without comparison.
The current application process is a bit archaic. Clearly, with the advent of the Internet and the quick and easy exchange of information, colleges should ask for portfolios of sample, graded school work. These portfolios should supplement applications and may be referenced when there's a need to compare the relative quality of two seemingly equal candidates or any question about the authenticity of the a student's application (including essay).
(On a side note, I'm surprised that more software developers don't keep and share their own portfolios of sample work for prospective clients/employers. A representative body of a person's work is clearly more of an indicator of the quality and skill of a person than any statements/certifications on a C.V. or résumé could possibly be.)