In answer to all these questions, I found a great website to help. (It can be visited HERE.) It dispelled many of my preconceived notions, like the idea that colleges only look at a test score or a racial group. Reading the article, it became clear that colleges look at almost 20 different factors to determine who they will admit.
First on the list is the academic record. Colleges look at test scores, your transcript, and any awards. Also taken into account are personal factors, like recommendations, extra curriculars, and traits that you have written about. The small factors are race, gender, geographic location, and legacy status.
Is this system fair? Does it give equal representation to everyone? I do not think so. Clearly the academic record is important, and personal factors help keep well-rounded students. The other factors that are taken into account I believe are possible unfair. A student should not be admitted with race being the deciding factor, nor should women be given higher priority than men when women make up the majority of college students. Area of origin should not be a factor at all, because colleges should be looking for the smartest person who can convince the board to admit them. All of these smaller factors that may be a decision maker are things the students could not control. Therefore, I don't think colleges should be able to use them to decide on admission.
Side note: the government puts a minimum requirement on colleges to admit a certain number of minority groups, including women as a minority. Is this right in our day and age?
Recent find: While this kind of discrimination does happen at many colleges, some individuals, like Carl Cohen, discuss and lecture about the injustice in this approach to college admissions, and as early as 1998 gave a very thorough and persuasive lecture at the Heritage Foundation about this subject. The text of it can be found HERE.
Edited on 10/25
David,
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you. People always tend to look for something that separates them for others in this kind of way. The question is: do colleges even care?
The discrimination argument is a hard one for me. Part of me says that the most fair system would be for straight up academic record. A university should just get the smartest bunch of kids they can find, and let them do great things. I think that you are right, when you consider that each quota (for race, gender, or filling a sports team) will cause the university's incoming class to be less academically strong. But will that make the best incoming class.
ReplyDeleteThe councilor writing at you first web-link, reminds us that they're not looking for a well rounded person, but rather a well rounded class. And that might include a quarterback, a symphony cellist, someone really into robotics, or even a few fast swimmers.
I'm still confused.
David,
ReplyDeleteGreat idea to tackle this subject that is of interest to many of your peers.
One issue immediately arises: what is the source of the information offered by the "School Cents" website? A critical reading of this content might make you question the veracity of the information offered. Could you think of another kind of site to consult that might give a different view?
Secondly, when you say: "colleges should be looking for the smartest person who can convince the board to admit them", you might question the fairness of that suggestion with as much scrutiny as you give race as a factor.
What exactly do you mean by "Is this right in our day and age?" The reader is left wondering about your true meaning here.