Website Allows Students to Gamble on Their Grades

Ultinsic rolled out their program last year to students at Penn and Ney York University. This year it has expanded to 36 universities including Harvard, University of Texas, and Princeton. A student registers on the site and uploads their schedule and transcript. Ultrinsic then calculates the odds based upon a student’s based performance and difficulty of schedule. The student can then wager up to $25 per class. The wagering cap increases as the student uses the site more. A freshman student has the chance for the largest payout. The student can earn $2000 on a $20 wage if he or she earns straight “A”’s all four years.

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Ultrinsic insists that they are not an online gambling site. They claim that the outcome is controlled by the student. Some have countered that it is legalized gambling because certain professors grade different ways. A written exam can be graded on a subjective basis as opposed to a multiple choice test which has clear cut answers. Legal experts think that there may be enough skill involved to keep the site exempt from gambling laws.

Ultrinsic CEO Steven Wolf is hoping to attract 3600 students this school year. His goal is based on getting 100 students per the 36 universities that are eligible. None of the universities have publicly supported the program all of them have declined to comment on the program. Ultrinsic will ultimately face some legal challenges to its controversial program, but until then students will continue to bet on themselves.