<p>Read this article and discuss what you think. Make no mistake Florida is following the very same pattern as the University of California System.</p>
<p>Yeah, that's pretty dumb in my opinion...In today's education world, it should really be equal admissions standards for all. Let the ones who deserve it shine.</p>
<p>Here is my position: Let's not follow California and substantially reduce the importance of the SAT, ACT, and GPA scores. This seems like the admissions people in the UCAL-System are being bullied by fringe left politics. I am all for Social Justice but in the same sense I do not want it crammed down my throat either.</p>
<p>If UF goes too far then the citizens will get ticked off and they will be forced to follow the admission pattern that the University of Michigan now adheres too.</p>
<p>I hope the Dean of UF Admissions is reading this - because the Legislature will not allow the best & brightest to get taken advantage of.</p>
<p>SSobick</p>
<p>As of now, what percent do you think UF places on ACT/SAT scores? Same question for GPA.</p>
<p>^ I honestly do not know the answer to that question. Obviously not as much as I would like considering we have a 126 point disparity between racial classifications for the last incoming class. I personally was very disturbed to hear that a good amount of middle class students were turned down with 1400's on their SAT and high GPA's (I guess they were not fortunate enough to be legacies).</p>
<p>The Admissions Department at UF has actually gone on record that they would rather have a child of a pig farmer (with substandard stats no less) instead of some of the top tier students who have been applying. This is strait up Class-Warfare Rhetoric and dangerous to the economic future of the state of Florida. Holistic Admissions practices if let go unchecked will DESTROY the quality of public education in the United States plain and simple.</p>
<p>You people need to open your eyes up to this sham, because it's egregious and undemocratic in my opinion. I would hope you all would agree that only the best & brightest should be allowed into this Flagship University. This is not a Republican vs. Democratic issue - it's about something much larger, and something much more important in my opinion.</p>
<p>You know what is GARBAGE? Basing admission on a stupid-one-day-coachable test that doesn't prove anything about a person rather than one having resources such as tutors/prep classes to prepare for.</p>
<p>WHATEVER!</p>
<p>^ Hey why don't you go back to your ivory tower and let us Floridians decide the kind of students that we want in our Flagship University. Honestly do you live in Florida? Do you care if we have a successful economy or not?</p>
<p>Go too far and Florida will follow Michigan's lead.</p>
<p>Gratz</a> v. Bollinger - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</p>
<p>What would it look like?
These would be the factors being considered by UF;</p>
<p>From the Common App.</p>
<p>ADMISSION FACTORS;
Weighted as: Very Important, Important, Considered, Not Considered.</p>
<p>A. ACADEMIC FACTORS:
1- Curriculum Rigor
2- Class Rank
3- Test Scores
4- Application Essay</p>
<p>B. NON-ACADEMIC FACTORS:
1- Extracurricular Activities
2- Talent / Ability
3- Character / Personal Qualities
4- Alumni/ae Relation
5- Geographical Residence
6- Volunteer Work
7- Work Experience</p>
<p>Here is how one of UF's competitors scores it:
From the University of Virginia Common App Data.</p>
<p>From the Common App.</p>
<p>ADMISSION FACTORS;
Weighted as: Very Important, Important, Considered, Not Considered.</p>
<p>A. ACADEMIC FACTORS:
1- Curriculum Rigor / Very Important
2- Class Rank / Very Important
3- Test Scores / Important
4- Application Essay / Important</p>
<p>B. NON-ACADEMIC FACTORS:
1- Extracurricular Activities / Important
2- Talent & Ability / Important
3- Character & Personal Qualities / Important
4- Alumni/ae Relation / Very Important
5- Geographical Residence / Considered
6- Volunteer Work / Considered
7- Work Experience / Considered</p>
<p>So how do you view UF's weight on these selection criteria?</p>
<p>^ UVA is doing it okay I guess (too much emphasis on legacy in my opinion).</p>
<p>The thing is this institution has a fair and equitable admissions policy. However, the University of California System sadly does not have such responsible benchmarks put into place (they are under immense political pressure to create a false sense of Social Justice). I worry about this because Florida is also a large state that very much follows in their path. I can already see our admissions policies moving in their direction.</p>
<p>I can't figure out why being a legacy counts for anything.</p>
<p>The top Cali schools must place a lot of importance on SAT scores. Their SAT middle 50% scores are really high.</p>
<p>I believe the article based on gut, but some of the statistics are hilarious</p>
<p>
[quote]
The probability of Native American students being admitted fell to 17.4 percent from 18.6 percent
[/quote]
</p>
<p>******** ! There is no way enough NA's applied to make that a statistically significant number. Honestly though they're in a tough position. If their class isn't diverse enough, they get criticized. If they try to skirt the law, they get criticized.</p>
<p>"The top Cali schools must place a lot of importance on SAT scores. Their SAT middle 50% scores are really high."</p>
<p>Berkeley & UCLA have like 50k applicants for each of their entering FTIC classes. Their SAT scores are high because the can cherry pick whoever they desire. In the future they are going to really be all over the place in who they admit into their classes. Like I said before I am all for increases in diversity, but it must be done within the realm of equal protection for all applicants. Overall I believe their version of Holistic Admissions is far too radical for fairness to be achieved.</p>
<p>I want to go on record that I really want UF to become a more diverse institution, but we must not sacrifise our integrity to get their. Admiting the best & brightest must come first.</p>
<p>SSobick</p>
<p>How are you going to increase diversity without AA? It's just a fact that whites score higher than hispanics and blacks.</p>
<p>
[quote]
How are you going to increase diversity without AA? It's just a fact that whites [and asians] score higher than hispanics and blacks.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I agree. Also the minorities that score high enough to be equally comparable to whites/asians are not going to UF. Those are the student getting scholarships to go to the top schools. However, I personally know exceptions of people that ended up at UF.</p>
<p>^ I don't have the answer to that question. But keep in mind the state of Florida signed into law that our public universities would no longer be allowed to do this (I have the same political outlook as that UCLA Professor). Basically two wrongs don't make a right.</p>
<p>I am all for following the University of Virginia in their admission factors. Clearly the University of California System version of Holistic Admissions violates the equal protection clause in my opinion, and if the University of Florida follows suit then they will also violate our 14th amendment in my opinion.</p>
<p>I'm just pointing out that, as of right now, you can't have diversity without AA. You can have one or the other but not both. As for Asians, I've heard it said that they get shafted by California universities.</p>
<p>"you can't have diversity without AA"</p>
<p>I can agree with that statement. The question is how do we go about leveling out the playing field? Do we follow the University of California System off the cliff and sacrifice quality to get a fixed number, or do we follow the University of Virginia who has come up with a fair and equitable solution without having the fringe left dictate how to facilitate their admissions policies? Do we want Radical and irresponsible admissions policies, or Progressive admission policies that can level out the playing field while at the same time does not violate the equal protection clause?</p>
<p>This may seem like semantics, but trust me it's one of the most important issues that the State University System of Florida will have to face.</p>
<p>Mr Obama gets my vote, so I'm part of the left. However, I do think all students should be treated equally. I don't think we need to level out the palying field. That being said, if being a minorty helps my daughter we would gladly accept that.</p>
<p>"That being said, if being a minorty helps my daughter we would gladly accept that."</p>
<p>I hope it helps her too. However I am of the opinion that she should have statistics that are comparable to the other students being admitted. Basically a 126 point difference in SAT score is far too great of a gap in my opinion (which was the case for the last incoming freshmen class at the University of Florida). I can almost guarantee that the University of Virginia does not have such a large dispartiy in their incoming class.</p>
<p>I think 50-75 points on the SAT is an acceptable number, and maybe a few points on the ACT as well. This would level out the playing field, while at the same time it allows for diversity to still flourish in the entering FTIC classes.</p>
<p>You see both sides can be happy: equal protection and social justice are a possibility. It's not a zero-sum game.</p>
<p>Her scores are actually right around the 75th percentile, so with UF it shouldn't be an issue. She went in cold with no prep. I actually think with some studying she would do well enough to get into much better schools, like Duke. There won't be much of a chance that we could get any financial aid, so that's kinda out. Point is, life's not fair and we just need to deal.</p>