So i was looking at colleges through the collegeboard college search tool. I look up the University of Virginia, and click on the tab “Applying”. Afterwards, I see the qualities that UVA considers important. It turns out that Race/ethnic status was considered as an important factor in their admission decisions. Why is this? Shouldn’t admissions be primarily based on academic factors such as SAT/ACT scores and GPA and nothing else? Seriously, why race/ethnic status? I also look up Virginia tech. They too consider race/ethnic status into admission decisions. Why is this? Why do they factor race/ethnic status into admission decisions? Why is it even considered at all?
Many colleges consider grander missions than simply issuing degrees. Part of this is a social mission – to serve traditionally under-resourced sub groups. Many private universities do this. Many public ones have special outreach programs, special support resources and sometimes, broader admissions abilities when reaching out to these sub groups.
Does this answer your question? Or are you wishing to debate its “fairness”? If the latter, then I suggest you go and post to your heart’s content on the third stickied thread on this forum. That’s where the affirmative action/racial bias/quotas etc. discussion takes place.
There is another reason: Many colleges value a diversity of perspectives and life experiences. They believe that campus life and classroom discussion is enriched when people from a variety of backgrounds engage with each other. Facilitating that interaction is part of what living and studying together is meant to be about.
You can also debate if this is the best/right way to achieve this goal - but like T26E4, I’m not looking for a debate on fairness.
The colleges’ motivations may be based in part on marketability to students.
Many students consider race/ethnicity of existing students at the school in their selection. For example, many students want there to be “enough” other students of their own race/ethnicity at the school (“enough” may be >=50% for many white students, though students of minority groups cannot be as picky). So a college that wants to maximize its marketability to as many students as possible would prefer to have what it thinks prospective students of each race/ethnicity think are “enough” of that race/ethnicity.
To build a diverse freshman class. It is a much more stimulating learning environment when people of all sorts of different socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds can express their vastly different opinions (based on their own unique experiences). It allows one to think from a multitude of perspectives.
I agree with what @ucbalumnus said, the colleges want to market themselves. If I'm a minority and Harvard is all white for example, I would not really want to apply as I would feel awkward. But if Harvard markets themselves as diverse, I would not feel out of place as many people are like me (minority with their own unique experiences to tell etc.) so I will decide to apply. Basically, if I'm black for example, I would want the school to have at least some black people, not all white kids.
The Ivies do this to encourage more people of varying races and ethnicities to apply. This obviously helps the school as more applicants means more money in application fees ==lower acceptance rate as they can reject more people===higher ranking and prestige=====more people applying
which is almost a positive feedback loop.
Huh. I’m all about getting a degree, getting a job, and getting money. I would probably have to sacrifice “racial” comfort for getting the degree I want/job/money. So this basically means that i’m willing to go to a university/college I’m not comfortable in just to get my degree and job opportunity, and get out.
I doubt that you will have to make that ‘sacrifice.’ Most schools that draw students outside of the region they are located in are sufficiently diverse and tolerant that you are likely to find people ‘like you’ no matter what you are racially/culturally.
While there are many students like you who do not really care much or at all about the college’s student demographics, there appear to be a substantial number of students who do care, such that colleges looking at their own marketability have to take note of that in their marketing plans.
For example, most historically black schools have attracted few non-black students, despite large scholarship offers. Some highly selective private schools in the east appear to be holding the line at about 50% white, since going lower may harm their marketability to white students in that region, but it allows them to have substantial numbers of students from other racial and ethnic groups to make those students see “enough” of their own race and ethnicity there.
An additional angle on the college’s marketing motivation is marketability to others who give money to the college. This means donors and (for public universities) the relevant government and political constituencies.
Not to sound rude, but what is the root cause of people caring about race? Is it evolutionary? Or is it just a phase we humans are going through? Sorry if this question seems out of place, but I’m just curious.