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<li><p>where are the statistics to backup that claim? I'd argue that only the "better-off" minorities are aware that they have a shot at the better schools, so of course more middle class minorities would be a part of the accepted pool. Just like more middle class and affluent WHITE kids are present in the accepted pool than poor ones. It is not affirmative action necessarily that CAUSES the fact that you mention...it is, I would argue, influenced by socioeconomic status that limits the pool of applicants, WHITE or MINORITY, at least according to a good number of top-20 college and university presidents.</p></li>
<li><p>Actually, it is untrue that colleges have admissions programs that favors lower-socioeconomic applicants. But, schools are moving towards holistic reviews because it is difficult to compare socioeconomically disadvantaged students with affluent kids who have more resources at their disposal. Such kadantaged kids, it is asumed, will have taken the opportunity of the "leg-up" that wealth provides. Since there are also those in the applicant pool, who do not come from that kind of background, it would be unfair to compare based just on data. The socioeconomically disadvantaged kid may have blossomed if given the opportunities money could provide, but did not have the option--whether it is where they go to school (no matter the quality) or the resources available to them. As to willingness of schools to include less socioeconomically advantaged kids...that is not the cases as, for example, impoverished Southeast Asian applicants are treated differently than those of Japanese, Chinese, or Korean applicants that tend to come from a different background. Schools like Harvard, UPenn, Yale, UNC, UVA, etc...have been tweaking their ADMISSIONS and FINANCIAL AID formulas to erase the HISTORIC trend of DISCRIMINATING AGAINST those who did not grow up in affluent homes, benefit from private or suburban school systems, etc... The problem is the affluent applicants do not want a change in policy because it affects their own chances at the better colleges. I should know, I went to a private HS, and my parents are affluent. I know about attitudes held by my peer group. I'm also part-Asian and part-White.</p></li>
<li><p>See above. Adcoms would make distinctions between the two candidates , if the former is, say, Chinese, and the latter is Tibetian. In any case, both are still underrepresented at a good number of private schools--although that is slowly changing.</p></li>
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