This part of the thread is about alleged discrimination in elite school admissions against folks in 4H, FFA, and ROTC. These researchers say that they normalize for all other variables other than participation in these activities, and I suggest that their normalization methods are inadequate.

You are asking about a completely different issue.

That said, I think my last sentence still answers your question:

"The stuff that the researchers can’t easily quantify often swings the decision between reject and admit."