I often read in the papers glowing accounts from time to time about how much better higher education is in the USA, particularly the Ivy League schools. Funnily enough, stakeholders in the US higher education system are pretty concerned and don't feel the garden is all rosy. I was pointed to this article by a US academic who is an old friend.
www.newrepublic.com/article/119321/harvard-ivy-league-should-judge-students-standardized-tests
The basic argument is that the Harvard and other Ivy League schools are selecting "holistically" which is much less meritocratic than aptitude testing and certainly murkier. After reading the article, I considered whether the only thing worse than 11+ exams, GCSEs and A levels is not having them!