I would add to Hunt’s list the fact they admit students from the same high schools year after year creates the same diversity mix. I would love to see them go 4 years accepting only students from high schools that have not been represented in over 20 years. Now that would increase their diversity. They could do this and not dilute the student body in any way.
Posters here are making two wrong assumptions. One is that admitting on meritocracy would be admitting solely on the basis of test scores. And two is that Asians somehow don’t have stellar ECs. The latter assumption is trivially untrue. I know plenty of Asians who have published research papers, won Olympiads, and done thousands of hours of community service. I’m confident that Asians are on par with other applicants in terms of ECs, if not better. It doesn’t make sense to assume that Asians would somehow have fewer ECs than other racial groups. I think people are making this assumption because of the racist stereotype of Asians studying all day long. While this may be true for some (as is the case with every other racial group), but I can assure you that they are not the majority.
The first assumption is wrong also because there are different ways of meritocracy. I think for a fairer admissions policy admission officers can keep doing everything they do now EXCEPT ask for race on the application. Why? Because it’s irrelevant, and the fact that they are asking it means that it is somehow being used for or against you. As Justice Roberts said, “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.”
@trooper11, I agree there are many high stat Asians with excellent EC’s. The problem comes when they are very similar. As been stated before, Harvard is looking for diversity of majors and interests. I have no clue what the percentage of Asian applicants into a STEM major is, but it is over saturated. Is it not Harvard’s prerogative to admit a diverse class of majors? Or maybe they want an entire orchestra, not just strings? Before you flame me, I will again say that the EC’s are excellent, just that too many are the same.
The SAT is an unreliable prediction.Those who rely on it to gain a clear preference or too explain discrimination do not understand the statistics at hand. Why? See my prior post to this thread and my new post to the 8th grader, scheduling SAT study time. Besides isn’t it more logical to assume that test results are wrong than to assume high test scores represent some new higher intelligent form of mankind? The later is ludicrous and contrary to science.
The real problem (speaking as sibling of a former Harvard admissions officer) is the ass backwards way those who complain construe “merit”. Solely by numbers - as if X # of SAT points of Y GPA = merit. Those are important variables, but confusing them with merit is confusing a symbol and the thing it represents (which doesn’t actually come across as brilliance). There are lots of reasons why admissions wants someone or not - but think of it this way. If you are solely looking at merit as a numbers game, and so many (really lots) have the same, nearly off the charts numbers, does getting those numbers seem = impressive to an admissions officer? no it doesn’t. That’s the one big insight I got from my sibling - getting those numbers does not make you special, and it DEFINITELY doesn’t buy your spot at (HYP, the Ivies, the top ten, wherever).
The test scores + GPAs aren’t the sole determinants of merit. That’s what I think gets lost in the arguments of those who believe worthy students are being discriminated against because of race. And ironically, arguing that merit is defined solely in those terms doesn’t help students who feel they’re on the receiving end of an unofficial racial quota.
For sure, you don’t buy yourself the right to a spot anywhere, including HYP, with GPAs, APs, straight 800s on SATs. The notion that you have a right to it with the most stellar #s comes across as presumptuous and intrusive. The admissions officers at the ivies in particular try to fashion a freshman class - and pride themselves on the mix of personalities/backgrounds/ etc. that they bring together. Trying to argue that you have a right to a spot there (wherever there is) - is not going to be a winning argument when you are talking to admissions officers.
I’d add, that some of the editorializing - that minorities don’t deserve any breaks, are unworthy, there is no discrimination anymore so why would anyone support affirmative action, etc., or that any student with lower numbers is not as worthy as a student - doesn’t paint a positive picture.
Please, please stop reviving this old thread. If you want to comment endlessly on the pros and cons of affirmative action, or whether Harvard discriminates against Asian-Americans, or whether the SAT measures anything worth measuring, go to the perpetual thread on this topic in the College Admissions forum.