Should a student be accepted into college based on merit over race? “Two-thirds of Americans believe college applicants should be admitted solely based on merit, even if that results in few minorities being admitted while 28% believe an applicant's racial and ethnic background should be taken into account to promote diversity on college campuses” ("Preface to 'Should Race Be a Consideration in College Admissions?'"). Taking away the merit of a hard working student, no matter his or her race is inexcusable. Students should be accepted into college based on grades and accomplishments; otherwise, it is reverse discrimination, it harms unprepared students, and it only works in theory, not real life circumstances. It is unfair to a deserving student to be cast aside for admission to college just because of his/her race. One college where admissions is based on diversity is the University of Michigan. “At the …show more content…
At lower grade levels, such as in high school or in elementary school, teachers and administration would never think to put a student who needed an accommodations student into an AP Calculus Class. This would definitely affect the student’s grade and more than that, it would give the student a sense of not belonging. It causes the student to “lose confidence and underperform even more while, at the same time, consolidating the stereotype that they are inherently poor students. And you can see how at each level there are feedback effects that reinforce the self-doubts of all the students who are struggling” (Sander). No teacher in his or her good judgment would set a student up for failure. It is a great idea to want equality in schools along with diversity, but depending on the educational preparedness of the student is what she determine what school or course of study is
By embracing, and not just celebrating diversity in our colleges, we can create a more broad, educated, and interesting view of the
No one—whether they’re black, white, Asian, Latino, or female—should have their qualifications questioned because of their skin color. Still using affirmative action today causes more problems than it should for minorities and women. Skin color should not be a factor of consideration for anything. Only scores, hard work, and dedication should be used to determine how a person will possibly succeed in college or a job.
Over the course of the recent past, universities across the U.S. have been faced with decisions on admissions. What was once popular, affirmative action, is now fading with a long past of problems, and new programs are entering into the picture. The University of Dayton and many others are taking actions to improve the standards of their students, regardless of race and background. These new concepts are reflecting higher academic progress, and increase in prestige and national reputation. By basing selection on academic ability and incorporating improved recruiting techniques, the nation would be filled with greater college standards and no use for an old and tiring affirmative action process.
Last summer, the Supreme Court ruled against the use of race in the college admissions process in the case of Fisher v. University of Texas. Since then, affirmative action has become a big issue in the media; however, many people still do not even know what affirmative action is. Affirmative action is a policy to prevent discrimination on the basis of “color, religion, sex, or national origin.” Overall, it favors minorities that are often discriminated. It might sound like an excellent policy; however, the use of this policy in the college admissions process is prejudice. In the college admissions process, affirmative action lowers the standards for some races, while raising the standard for other races. For example, an Asian might need a SAT score of 2300 to be considered for admission at a top school such as Yale and a white applicant might need a score of 2100, while an African American or Hispanic only needs a score of 1700. While affirmative action provides equality in the workplace, it has no place in the college admissions process and should, therefore, be abolished and replaced. This type of policy can be repealed completely, replaced with a college admissions process that favors first generation college applicants, or replaced with a policy based on an applicant’s socioeconomic status.
Selingo, Jeffrey. "New Study Questions Educational Benefits of Diversity." The Chronicle of Higher Education 49.29 (2003). Academic OneFile. Web. 9 Aug. 2011.
Affirmative action has been a controversial topic ever since it was established in the 1960s to right past wrongs against minority groups, such as African Americans, Hispanics, and women. The goal of affirmative action is to integrate minorities into public institutions, like universities, who have historically been discriminated against in such environments. Proponents claim that it is necessary in order to give minorities representation in these institutions, while opponents say that it is reverse discrimination. Newsweek has a story on this same debate which has hit the nation spotlight once more with a case being brought against the University of Michigan by some white students who claimed that the University’s admissions policies accepted minority students over them, even though they had better grades than the minority students. William Symonds of Business Week, however, thinks that it does not really matter. He claims that minority status is more or less irrelevant in college admissions and that class is the determining factor.
Racial preference has indisputably favored Caucasian males in society. Recently this dynamic has been debated in all aspects of life, including college admission. Racial bias has intruded on the students’ rights to being treated fairly. Admitting students on merit puts the best individuals into the professional environment. A university’s unprejudiced attitude towards race in applicants eliminates biases, empowers universities to harness the full potential of students’ intellect, and gives students an equal chance at admission.
While both race and gender have very real societal and, in some instances, personal consequences which enables both to be categorized as real neither race nor gender is more real than the other. Both of them faced and still face overt and covert discrimination, and both of them are built upon a mountain of logical fallacies that are able to ultimately be reduced down to societal standards and obligations forced upon them by the dominant group. Since they are also both deeply embedded in our culture they have become integrated into our sense of who we, as humans, are and in our perceptions of other people and situations.
...& Hart, M. (2013). Considering class: College access and diversity. Harvard Law & Policy Review, 7(2), 367–403.
When diversity is being discussed, there are a plethora of ideas that are associated with it. Whether people are talking being put on a waitlist for college, about people of color, or about representation in the media, the subject of diversity is not rare. Recently, the conversation of diversity has become more common because colleges want to demonstrate that they have diversified campus. How would diversity on campus be defined? Most importantly, diversity is more than having an extraordinary personality. Race, gender, sexuality, and social status are a few of the superfluous traits that make an individual unique in a college’s eyes. In Sophia Kerby’s article, “10 Reasons Why We Need Diversity on College Campuses”, she notes that, while there has already been an effort to diversify high schools and middle schools, accepting students of different backgrounds is not as apparent in higher education (1) . A university desires to diversify its campus in order to benefit the students that are attending the college. Students are not only likely to improve
Affirmative action policies were created to help level the playing field in American society. Supporters claim that these plans eliminate economic and social disparities to minorities, yet in doing so, they’ve only created more inequalities. Whites and Asians in poverty receive little to none of the opportunities provided to minorities of the same economic background (Messerli). The burden of equity has been placed upon those who were not fortunate enough to meet a certain school’s idea of “diversity” (Andre, Velasquez, and Mazur). The sole reason for a college’s selectivity is to determine whether or not a student has the credentials to attend that school....
Annotated Bibliography Journals: The Journal of the American Denson, N., & Chang, M. (2009). Racial Diversity Matters: The Impact of Diversity-Related Student Engagement and Institutional Context. American Educational Research Journal, 46, 322-353. This article discusses the different forms of racial diversity contribution to students’ educational and learning experiences and the positive effects on students who adopt these diversity opportunities. The author demonstrates how the quality of higher education is substantially heightened by diversity-connected efforts.
Bollinger case, the Gratz v. Bollinger case favored a different ruling in which race was not constitutional for distributing 20 or 1/5 of points to minorities who were underrepresented on the campus of state universities. I too agree with the court's decision because race can often get complicated when other factors such as being bi-racial and being a certain percentage of other ethnicities can be difficult to classify or group. Giving me 20 points on my application just because I'm Black is somewhat impeding and downgrading; my education, extra-curriculum activities, and other leadership experiences will be devalued and unappreciated in my eyes. I am a strong advocate for more racial inclusion and diversity programs on college campuses; however, I understand that race can be complex with negating and challenging certain stereotypes or other taboo topics that relates to race and ethnicity. Thus, another person's race should not be more valued or look down upon just because of phylogenetic features. Each race should be viewed as one of the same, but in reality, its not because of economical disparities, political beliefs, and social
For hundreds of years, racial discrimination has been occurring in our society affecting families and underprivileged kids. Therefore, the racial slurs and the actions towards one another is based off bias, where we grew up and how we were raised as a child individually. From past experiences, to our current lifestyle, there will always be a discriminate person or group protesting and starting new revolutions because of the hatred and undoing actions that have occurred in our past society. Racism and bias opinions are understandable because they derive from from a person’s cultural influences, exposure to dominant racial organizations, and the tendency to conform to expected stereotypes.
Discrimination is a feasible method of making decisions in life based on the group, class, or category to which a person belongs to. “In an ideal world, people would be equal in rights, opportunities, and responsibilities, despite their race or gender. In the world we live in, however, we constantly face all kinds of neglect based on different attributes.” When one hears the word discrimination, the first thought that comes to mind is racial discrimination. In fact, it does not solely have to be racial discrimination. There are many forms of discrimination such as age, disability, transgender, and sex discrimination. This paper will focus on discrimination based on gender, race and age in the workplaces.