Recently, I read an article suggesting that affirmative action could be coming to a close, almost sixty years after its implementation. In cases against Harvard and the University of North Carolina, the Supreme Court is expected to completely overturn, or significantly diminish at the very least, affirmative action in college admissions decisions. Such a decision could have a widespread effect nationwide, leading to less diverse classes,
the reduction of special programs meant to foster inclusion, and other negatives. The ruling, expected by June of this year, would be detrimental to historically disadvantaged and marginalized groups – during the October 2022 hearing, universities tried to argue that diversity is critical for learning, but to no avail.
In layman’s terms, this decision would completely eliminate race in college admissions. The race you input into your user profile would be used for admissions data, but nothing more. Currently, depending on what you list, you may receive a handicap or setback. The cases, first filed in 2014 by Students for Fair Admissions, argues that universities actively discriminate against White and Asian applicants by giving preference to Black, Native American, and Hispanic students. The institutions most likely to be affected by this decision are those considered to be ‘selective institutions’ (colleges with a 50% or lower acceptance rate), comprise of around 200 colleges and universities nationwide.
This potential decision follows the COVID-era policy changes regarding standardized testing, where a vast majority of schools have made the SAT and ACT completely optional. On one hand, this benefits students who cannot afford proper tutoring and resources to excel on these lengthy examinations. However, the other side argues that standardized testing was one of the only ways to help intelligent students escape unfortunate situations, where their GPA may reflect a poor curriculum or personal life rather than their academic aptitude.
In my opinion, there are definitely valid arguments on both sides of the situation. I think everyone can agree that all students deserve an equal opportunity to succeed in the college admissions process. However, the two schools of thought behind this statement are completely different. Should colleges execute this by giving a boost to those with historically disadvantaged ethnicities, regardless of their current academic or economic standing? Or should they implement a race-blind admissions process, where students will solely be judged off of their statistics and essays?
As someone who is severely financially disadvantaged, but White, I will say I believe financial need should be factored into admissions more than it is, regardless of race. Very few schools are need-blind, not taking a student’s financial situation into account during admissions. However, the majority of private institutions WILL look at need, and admit those who they can safely assume will be able to afford to pay all four (or more) years’ worth of tuition. The majority of need-based scholarships are reserved for students of certain ethnicities, which puts poorer Whites and Asians at a severe disadvantage. Regardless of what happens with the upcoming Supreme Court decision, poor (and middle class!) students deserve a fighting chance when it comes to college admissions and student debt as well.
Cameron,
Nice work on this post! I found it to be very informational while also providing your own input throughout which enhanced the final product. In this post, you asked about race-blinding for college admissions, which is a very unique perspective I had not really considered. I think everyone deserves an equal opportunity for success with college admissions. I think they can do something like race-blinding while also ensuring they are accepting enough historically disadvantaged groups. Whether this is by going through applications and if there are identical applications teetering on the edge of whether the individual will be accepted, choosing the historically disadvantaged individual. But overall, I found this to be a very interesting, hot topic, due to the nature of it being college admissions season. Great work and I look forward to your future posts.