On the heels of a college scandal that roiled many involved in the higher education space, the Onion decided to take its own approach to the university admissions process. In doing so, the popular satire website featured none other than Iowa State.

Published March 18, the headline read: “Thousands Of Students Forced To Attend Iowa State After University Sets Acceptance Rate To 140%.”

And while the Onion is commonly known for its ability to take an issue or public figure and turn around a fake news article that makes a joke of the situation, the Onion article about Iowa State is actually kind of true.

The acceptance rate for Iowa State students is on the high end of 89 percent. Iowa State, like the University of Northern Iowa and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Iowa, all use the Regent Admission Index. Automatic acceptance is granted to anyone with a score of at least 245.

While some do not meet this general admissions requirement, it’s relatively easy to get into Iowa State compared to the elite and Ivy-league institutions such as the University of Southern California, Yale and Georgetown involved in the college admissions scandal.

For many, the recent scandal perpetrated by many wealthy families, including Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman, highlights the use of money and notoriety to obtain special admissions to elite colleges as 89 percent at Iowa State is much closer to 140 percent than Yale, which lets in about 6.7 percent of students.

The Onion article also speaks to Iowa State’s recent initiatives to build a more diverse and inclusive academic environment. The article even states it in the opening paragraph: “In part of an ongoing effort to foster a more inclusive academic community …”

In many ways, this is true. While Iowa State is a predominately white institution, nearly one in four Iowa State students is either a minority or an international student, according to fall 2018 enrollment.

“In fact, we were quite surprised by the number of international students we were able to prod onto planes,” President Wendy Wintersteen is fake quoted in the Onion.

And what really speaks to Iowa State’s acceptance rate was the Onion’s decision to report that Iowa State “would not be adding any additional scholarships or housing, but promised that each student would love their dozens of new roommates.”

This mirrors fall 2015, in which the university topped at 36,001 students — the largest in school history.

While a dormitory was in the midst of being built in fall 2015, now recognized as Geoffroy Hall, Iowa State struggled to find housing for its giant enrollment. In a lot of cases, students were assigned to dens rather than traditional dorm rooms to accommodate.

Iowa State’s enrollment has since decreased and ample housing is readily available, however, the Onion article touches on the very real history of the university’s decisions surrounding diversity and inclusion, enrollment and admissions.