<p>so no one wants to answer my question... anyway, I think HBCUs are good because for one, they are a support system for black students. Of course Diversity is important, but this is not the only time in life you will be able to encounter diverse groups of people. Heck, my HS has way more diversity than most schools, Secondary or Postsecondary, I know.</p>
<p>Here's a link to a College Confidential thread on colleges with diversity: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=28813%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=28813</a></p>
<p>The great thing about Harvard is its commitment to affirmative action. It has many more african-americans, latinos and persons of color than any other Ivy. Yale and Princeton seem to attract white elites who run the country, as evidenced in the recent presidential campaigns,where almost everyone went to Yale, and just 1 to Harvard. Harvard therefore offers more of a chance to learn from and "rub elbows" with these minorities,who have maybe less good grades and SATs but great potential, and not just from all highly educated whites who went to top prep schools and super- public high schools. The latter have book smarts, but the minorities know things from a unique perspective.</p>
<p>Harvard and similar schools are also reaching out to low income and first generation college people of all races. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, not all URMs have scores, grades that are lower than the Ivies average. Some come from upper class homes that are even 4th generation Ivy Leaguers (this was the case even when I went to Harvard back in the 70s). One can't put all minorities or all whites in one box.</p>
<p>I'm Black and I'm a Junior in high school. Diversity was definitely one of the primary things I looked at in a college. Out of all the HBCUs, the only one I want to go to is Howard, other than that my first choice is University of Pennsylvania. I don't know how many people have frowned or made faces at when I told them that and trust me I get offended fast. One thing Howard and UPenn have in common is they both have high international percentages and I love meeting people from different countries.</p>
<p>"not all URMs have scores, grades that are lower than the Ivies average.Some come from upper class homes that are even 4th generation"</p>
<p>Well, I think if a minority person comes from that type of home, they should not be considered for prefernce, because they don'y add any more than the average white person from the same type of home. But that;s just my opinion.</p>
<p>Mensa160, if you think that multi-generation black Ivy leaguers are just "white Ivy Leagers dipped in chocolate", you are very much mistaken. At the end of the day, a black Ivy Leaguer is still a black person, subject to many of the same racial stereotypes and prejudices as any other black man on the streets, especially if he is trying to hail a cab at the wrong time of day, in the wrong part of town. These types of experiences in and of themselves affect one's perspective and enable one to speak from a POV that diverges from the mainstream. This thread is about the value of diversity on college campuses. Don't assume that a black student who doesn't hail from the ghetto and speak ebonics has nothing to contribute on that front.</p>
<p>"At the end of the day, a black Ivy Leaguer is still a black person, subject to many of the same racial stereotypes and prejudices as any other black man on the streets, especially if he is trying to hail a cab at the wrong time of day, in the wrong part of town."</p>
<p>Mensa, to see what life is like for a Harvard-educated Princeton prof, read the introduction to Cornel West's "Race Matters," and see how having all of that education as well as a high status job doesn't help him get a cab in NYC or be able to drive through the country without being pulled over by police and mistaken for a drug dealer.</p>
<p>One can learn a lot by meeting people of all races from all kinds of different backgrounds.</p>
<p>
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One can learn a lot by meeting people of all races from all kinds of different backgrounds
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<p>All I'm saying is that the color of a person's skin doesn't matter. Kids should be evaluated by who they are and what they can contribute. I don't judge that by skin. But I will read the book you mentioned.</p>
<p>Yes, but wouldn't you expect males and females to have different views on some subjects? Why shouldn't different races?</p>
<p>I"m hispanic</p>
<p>Even though I am not part of an ethnic minority myself, I think diversity is a nice thing. Part of the reason I enjoy living in Toronto is because it is such a diverse city, which allows me both to come into contact with a large variety of interesting people, all of whom have different backgrounds, and, of course, to feed my gluttonous habits with lots of different kinds of ethnic food. ;)
But all the same, I didn't seek out colleges specifically for their diversity but for their academic quality. What I want out of university is mostly interesting coursework, since that's the fun part for me. A diverse campus is definitely an added bonus, but not completely necessary in my mind.
Besides, I really tend not to notice whether a place is diverse or not. One summer I attended a music program and found myself hanging out with a crowd largely of Asian descent. But it wasn't until someone pointed out to me one evening two weeks in that I was the only white girl in the room that it even occurred to me. Likewise, the small private school I attend has mostly white students (though more because of chance than from a discriminatory policy, thankfully), but I didn't notice that either until somebody else pointed it out. I think I find all people quacko enough on their own that I can find diversity anywhere.</p>
<p>I'm a Black Female Student.</p>
<p>I don't care about ethnic diversity very much. I put more importance on the school itself and quality of education, not racial diversity. I live in a very diverse area and quite honestly I don't think it's been very helpful to me, maybe it's actually been kind of negative.</p>
<p>I feel that having more black and latinos than other Ivies is a real plus for Harvard. It totally changes the experience.</p>
<p>Being Hispanic/Black, I currently attend a diverse catholic hs in NJ. The college I am looking for must have diversity in numbers. I am hoping that diversity on the campus will also exist beyond racial lines. I looked at HBCU and non-HBCus, numbers were just to tilted. Howard I believe was more diverse than most, but I am not interested in DC. In order to survive in today's world, you must have social skills that I feel you can not attain without diversity. At my age, I know that my family has instilled my heritage/culture in me, where I know who I am and where I come from, but, I also know where I want to go, and where I see myself.</p>
<p>At first, I was only looking at diverse schools. Then I realized it shouldn't have been my main factor in choosing a school. After all, I was only looking at pretty diverse cities for college.</p>
<p>Still, all the schools I applied to ended up having 20-30% "minority" populations anyways. That's extremely lower than my current high school, where 75% is "minority." I haven't been in a "white" classroom since 6th grade when I lived in Sacramento. lol In fact, at my junior high, I was the only non-Asian (full or part) in my class.</p>
<p>Annabookit, what unique social skills does diversity help you attain?
I'm not trying to argue with you; I'm just curious about what you mean.</p>
<p>Kitkattail - Diversity allows you to meet people who have different opinions, beliefs and customs. Learning how to get along with a person who believes in a different God or no God at all would certainly be a wonderful social skill for anyone...consider the mid-east.</p>
<p>Racism and cultural biases are harder to maintain when we establish friendships across those lines. Individuals always violate a stereotype, and so we learn to meet and work with individuals without trying to classify them. Understanding and tolerance are good social skills.</p>
<p>When we recognize that other people have different approaches to life, we are better equiped to compare and contrast and perhaps modify our own approaches. We are less likely to blame and condemn when we understand situations better.</p>
<p>I get suprised by even schools in the midwest about diversity. Even if it's only 10% that seems like a lot to me. After all, my high school is 97% white.</p>