Legacy preference or legacy admission is a preference given by an institution or organization to certain applicants on the basis of their familial relationship to alumni of that institution, with college admissions being the field in which legacy preferences are most controversially used. Students so admitted are referred to as legacies or legacy students. Legacy preferences in college and university admissions are particularly widespread in the United States; almost three-quarters of research universities and nearly all liberal arts colleges grant legacy preferences in admissions.