are colleges racist?

<p>emory,
"@MiamiDAP :open_mouth: i thought this only happens with undergrad… couldnt this be potentially dangerous? :confused: "</p>

<p>-I had an opposite impression, that there is much more connection/URM preferences at Grad. School, not just Med. School, but top MBA programs,…etc. Questions why and if it is resulting in negative outcomes, and whatever other questions are irrelevant. It is there by our own design, so now we have to bear consequences. If you start thinking very broad, examples will start popping in your head. All you can do is to keep it in mind. Yes, it is hurting some in the category that meant to be protected. There are awesome qualified individuals there. However, others will question their achievements because of many others who got results because of their connections or race status. It does not work, but nothing could be done at this point.</p>

<p>i dont understand how colleges want to “balance” the ethnic groups when theres only going to be like 5% asian (example) i would think balances is more like .25 asian, .25 white, .25 black, etc…when colleges claim they’re balancing their diversity, then why is it there are still more of a ethnic group than others?</p>

<p>The idea is that the proportions of ethnic groups should, more or less, mirror their representation in the general population.</p>

<p>Note that many schools quite clearly make sure that the genders are pretty evenly balanced. This is not done because they like either men or women better.</p>

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<p>That is somewhat different from the idea that affirmative action should be done to counteract past and present racial discrimination. Indeed, the widely believed favoring of European American over Asian American applicants would fit into the “representation in the general population” model, but makes no sense in the “counteract past and present racial discrimination” model.</p>

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<p>A few years ago the LA Times did an article examining why Cal Poly SLO has a lower Asian enrollment. Whites and Asians are admitted at the same rate, but Asian enrollment is only half that of Whites. The article postulates that may be due to the fact that there is no Asian community near San Luis Obispo. Also, Asians may perceive more prestige in a UC degree than in a Cal Poly degree, causing them to enroll at UC’s in such large numbers.</p>

<p>[Cal</a> Poly Diversity | Diversity Lagging at Cal Poly - Page 3 - Los Angeles Times](<a href=“http://articles.latimes.com/2004/mar/21/local/me-poly21/3]Cal”>http://articles.latimes.com/2004/mar/21/local/me-poly21/3)</p>

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But then, not many people of any ethnicity live near SLO since it’s in the middle of the state and SLO and nearby cities aren’t very big. I assume (but haven’t checked) that most of the student attending CalPoly SLO are from the SF bay area, LA area, and San Diego area - just like the people going to the UCs.</p>

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<p>The article infers that minority students want to go to a school where there are nearby minority communities. This goes for Latinos and African-Americans as well as Asians. SLO doesn’t have any such neighborhoods close by, thereby making it less appealing for minorities to want to move there.</p>

<p>Here’s a web page that details where the Cal Poly students come from. They draw from the entire state. </p>

<p>[Cal</a> Poly Quick Facts - Find Out About Academics, Student Body, Campus Size, History, Graduates & Careers, Buildings and More](<a href=“Press Releases | University Communications and Marketing”>Press Releases | University Communications and Marketing)</p>

<p>Geographic Origin of Freshmen:
San Francisco Bay Area: 31%
Central Coast (San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Monterey counties): 9%
Los Angeles area: 23%
San Joaquin Valley:8.5%
San Diego area: 8%
Sacramento area: 7%
Other California: 5.5%
Other states: 6.8%
International Students: 0.4%</p>

<p>I think the low level of enrollment by Asians at Cal Poly SLO is rooted in the strong feelings that Asians have about the need to attend universities with status and prestige. While many Californians recognize Cal Poly SLO as being on a par with UC Berkeley and UCLA, probably most Asians see it as just another CSU. In the Asian community acceptance at UC Berkeley is the only college application outcome that would be seen as a source of real pride. Acceptance of a child at one of the other UCs would be a disappointment but one that could be lived with. To have children going to a CSU because they were not accepted by a UC would be a source of shame for many Asian parents.</p>

<p>This attitude on the part of Asians has created a tremendous opportunity for many high achieving White students with strong GPAs and SAT scores. They can apply to one of the state’s top schools and not have to worry about competition from high achieving Asians or URMs benefiting from holistic admissions polices for a seat at Cal Poly SLO.</p>

<p>when you have asian parents, it’s shameful if you don’t get into the top 20 schools in the nation or at least the top 3 schools in your the state. that’s why there are so many asian applicants to top schools.</p>

<p>Whatever happened to finding “fit?”
Whatever happened to learning/knowledge about something (schools) rather than relying on what one’s sister-in-law proclaims?
oh, I forgot – I’m “better” than you, I study “harder” (my ethnic group studies harder) and so deserve an Ivy slot. It’s true because…I say so!
eek, what an attitude. “Top 20 or die!” Nevermind Tiger Mom’s really the applicant, not the applicant!
I am not affiliated with Cal Poly in any way, for example, but anecdotally have heard over the yrs here on the west coast that it offers a great education. I tHINK that’s pretty popularly known. I don’t follow it now, but believe it is not an easy admit. It is a school that is in demand (probably for good reasons, from an informed population of applicants)
Likewise, was aware of several students who graduated from UC Santa Cruz (eek!) and have been fully successful in tech careers.
Tech careers have been pretty rewarding over the yrs here in Silicon Valley.
I mean, what % of the US economy is high tech? – significant.
My philosophy is that a school WOULDN’T EXIST if it didn’t have some merit. Take time to find out the history, the strong aspects. Of course, there are some differences, academic curricula, standards, faculty, atmosphere, facilities, size, location do vary all over this great country.
Also - I think the $$$ a university has and the advertising power it exercises, add up to quite a bit of…influence.
I remember when one of my kids applied to Rice and my student’s Silicon Valley peers were unimpressed. I thought (but didn’t say)…have you ever researched Rice (seems like a reasonable idea for quite a few students to consider)? Visited it?? – try getting out and about a bit in this country, and the world! I don’t think Rice crassly “advertises” like some schools (ahem), but it seems a super solid university and Houston is America’s 4th largest city.</p>

<p>Why do colleges want a diverse group?</p>

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<p>However, lots of Asian students attend some other CSUs like San Jose State and the other Cal Poly in Pomona (about 30% of the students in both of these schools are Asian). And many attend community colleges as well.</p>

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Well, sure. It’s not about counteracting discrimination, but about creating a mix that the college thinks will be a good environment for students, and that will continue to attract applicants. This is why, for example, schools try to keep a male/female balance–that’s what most applicants, male and female, want. And I would just like to emphasize that I have never heard of any evidence that any school is favoring whites over Asians to the extent that Asians are admitted at a rate less than their representation in the broader society–the complaint is that an admission rate of double or even quadruple that of societal representation is still unfairly low. That may be so, but it doesn’t resonate as much as discrimination based on racial animus.</p>

<p>My sense is that the military is a model for racial integration. What is it that the military has done that colleges might learn from?</p>

<p>I don’t think there’s a problem with racial integration at the UCs since they don’t deny anyone admission based on their race. If a person qualifies for admission based on their academic record and a few other attributes then they’re offered admission regardless of their race. If the academic qualifications aren’t balanced between the races then the issues are at a much lower point than college admission time. </p>

<p>Regarding the military vs college - it comes down to the pool of applicants that qualify for admission. The academic qualifications for admission to the US Army, for example, are much easier than for admission to UCLA, for example. The pool is much larger among all races. But in neither case do they discriminate based on race for admissions I believe - which IMO is as it should be.</p>

<p>UCBalumnus wrote:</p>

<p>“However, lots of Asian students attend some other CSUs like San Jose State and the other Cal Poly in Pomona (about 30% of the students in both of these schools are Asian). And many attend community colleges as well.”</p>

<p>I think the Asians at San Jose State and Cal Poly Pomona are at the best school that they can get into. However, only the highest performing Asian students can get into Cal Poly SLO and if they have the scores and grades to get into Cal Poly SLO that means they can also get accepted at top tier UCs like UC Berkeley and UCLA. While many high performing White students will choose the education offered at Cal Poly SLO over the UCs, I believe most Asians will opt for what they perceive as the more prestigious UCs.</p>

<p>Cal Poly SLO is not as selective as UC Berkeley or UCLA; the high school GPA and SAT score stats of freshmen of Cal Poly SLO are very similar to those of freshmen of UC Irvine.</p>

<p>I 100% believe colleges are racists. I’ve posted it before, and I’ll post it again. What other orginizations are allowed to give special treatment to one race and not another? If that isn’t racism, I certainly don’t know what is.</p>

<p>^^ That’s not all colleges as has been stated about the UCs and CSUs but that’s due to a law that was passed to protect against racial preference being given. I don’t know how many other colleges are ‘race blind’ in admissions.</p>

<p>Cal Poly SLOStudent Profile</p>

<p>Preliminary New Freshman Profile Fall 2011
COLLEGE APPLIED / SELECTED / GPA / ACT / SAT1*
Agriculture, Food & Env. Sciences 3,220 1,549 3.75 26 1204
Architecture & Env. Design 2,088 574 3.94 29 1316
Business 4,602 1,817 3.89 29 1293
Engineering 9,431 / 3,503 / 4.01 / 31 / 1369
Liberal Arts 6,936 2,044 3.86 28 1264
Science & Mathematics 6,718 2,824 3.94 29 1294
Total 32,995 12,311 3.92 29 1300 </p>

<p>*NOTE: SAT1 math and reading scores only</p>