<p>wat's with the minorities anyway? i mean, i thought discrimination was gone for good, but now the colleges are bringing it back. y r they trying to different the minority from the norm?
i highly disagree with their giving URM status!!! it's just discrimination again!!! man, you'd think they have thought about it since they(colleges) are suppose to be smart, i mean wat's up with them?</p>
<p>now asians are discriminated against :(</p>
<p>i just wish i was 1/16 native american or black</p>
<p>azns arent disctiminated against. There are a larger proportion of them applying to college than there are of other minorities. Of comperable size minorities, if 10% of minority A applies to college and 70% of minority B applies, minority B is going to have a much harder time getting in. (note my awesome political correctness)</p>
<p>"Cornell University has an enduring commitment to support equality of education and employment opportunity by affirming the value of diversity and by promoting an environment free from discrimination.</p>
<p>Association with Cornell, either as a student, faculty, or staff member, involves participation in a free community where all people are recognized and rewarded on the basis of individual performance rather than personal convictions, appearance, preferences (including sexual or affectional orientation), or happenstance of birth.</p>
<p>Cornell University's history of diversity and inclusion encourages all students, faculty and staff to support a diverse and inclusive university in which to work, study, teach, research and serve.</p>
<p>No person shall be denied admission to any educational program or activity or be denied employment on the basis of any legally prohibited discrimination involving, but not limited to, such factors as race, color, creed, religion, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status. Cornell University is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer. "</p>
<p>Affirmative action does not just apply to race but all types of diversity:</p>
<p>"Diversity refers to human qualities that are different from our own and those of groups to which we belong; but that are manifested in other individuals and groups. Dimensions of diversity include but are not limited to: age, ethnicity, gender, physical abilities/qualities, race, sexual orientation, educational background, geographic location, income, marital status, military experience, parental status, religious beliefs, work experience, and job classification."</p>
<p>Is there some new news to this or did you just decide to start an affirmative action debate out of nowhere?</p>
<p>wat i thought was, using sparticous800's example, y should B have a much harder time?
if there is no discrimination and colleges don't select ppl because of their race, then doesn't A=B???
then should the 10% be combined with the 70% then from those to select the most suitable candidate?
y are they trying to get ppl b/c of their minority status?</p>
<p>URM = Under-Represented Minority; It's purpose it to level the playing field for people who don't have equal opportunities. I, a "URM", have seen both sides and believe me... as much as you want to believe the education received by the two groups are equal, they aren't. </p>
<p>I went to a high school in which the population consists of 95% URM's, 85% hispanic, 10% black, the other 5% is white and asian. The majority of the students in my school do not speak english, as they have arrived from south america within the last two years. The counselors know nothing, the textbooks are outdated, the teachers are apathetic, classrooms are held in closets and storage rooms, etc. My high school's average SAT score is about 200 points below the mean and only 35% of the class takes the test, the ACT average is even lower (something like 16) and even less people take that test. 50% of the people in my school go on to postsecondary education, an overwhelming amount go to Miami-Dade Community College, the rest go to FIU. Our valedictorian went to the University of Florida and her SAT score was a 1200. All schools are not created equal.</p>
<p>I think that it should be done on a socio-economic basis, not so much on a race basis (the assumption is those who have a socio-economic disadvantage are of "minority" races). This assumption, although true for a great deal of people, provides wealthy "minorities" who have all of the opportunities of a wealthy white student an unfair advantage in admissions and job-hunting. </p>
<p>My $0.02</p>
<p>It is also my experience that, after dealing with both 'prep prodigies' and URM's, there is not much difference in their natural intelligence. Many of those URM's are brighter than the prep schoolers who end up at Ivy League schools, and given the same opportunities would outshine the privileged 9 times out of 10; that is why school's try and find these students and provide them the opportunities they need to succeed... if that practice were not in place, a great deal of future leaders would never make it off the streets.</p>
<p>Sorry about that, I just think someone who has a privileged background should not complain about the extra weight given in admissions. I'm sure most minorities would trade all the suffering and hardships for those few points.</p>
<p>Few points? Read the Bell Curve...the black mean SAT is something like 250+ points lower than the white mean at UCB.</p>
<p>EPorrell, i guess ppl from ur school are just not motivated enough to improve their situation. If they really want to, they can go to a library and find an AP review book and get a 5 on the AP. I don't see it as an excuse. I grew up in the worst part of New York City, I still strive for the best... Back to the orginal question, if out of the 10 minority As, only 2 qualify, but out of the minority Bs, 50 out of 60 quality, would you still take the 8 minority As or would you rather take the 40 minorty Bs... Cornell would take at least 4 or 5 of As and only 15-20 Bs. got the point?</p>
<p>I can see we're heading down the slippery slope into an affirmative action debate.</p>
<p>Noka: We discussed The Bell Curve in Bio278 (evolutionary bio) at Cornell. There are many flaws with the reasoning in that book.</p>
<p>Stuyvesant06: You are essentially acquiescing to the current system in which certain minorities have to work harder in order to acheive the same amount of academic success. You seem to take the stance that you would just work harder rather than attempt to change the system or level the playing field. There are others who prefer the latter.</p>
<p>well
if a black student applies to howard, they wont get affirmative action <em>obviously</em>
if an asian student applies to wesleyan, they <em>will</em> be the beneficiaries of affirmative action.
if a male student applies to vassar, he will most likely get an extra push because of aa.
the list goes on and on and on. affirmative action exists for a lot of people at a lot of different places. it just depends on whether the school you are applying to has a lot of students like you, or barely any at all.</p>