As Emerson is set to have its first graduating class, many students are filled with anxiety regarding the college application season. However, with the June Supreme Court ruling officially banning affirmative action in college admissions, there is a significant change to how applications are looked at. Many Emerson seniors share different opinions on what this ruling means for applications they submit this year.
Affirmative action is a policy where a university or workplace considers a candidate’s race, gender, ethnic origin, and similar factors when reviewing an application. This practice was created in the 1960s during the civil rights movement as a solution to hiring and college admissions discrimination.
College admissions officers consider many factors, including a student’s extracurriculars, test scores, school grades, and community involvement. However, under affirmative action, colleges also consider the diversity of the incoming class.
The new Supreme Court ruling pushes a race-blind approach to the holistic admissions process. This has sparked a debate regarding what this means for students applying.
Supporters of affirmative action argue that without this policy, schools cannot consider barriers minority students face regarding education. Senior Caleb Simon shares his concern regarding what this ruling means for equality in the admissions process.
“Minorities are a small fraction of the applicant pool consistently being belittled because of our trends of performing slightly below the majority,” Simon said. “Colleges cannot say they are committed to diversity and comply with this band. How else are they supposed to distinguish us from the general crowd?”
On the other hand, opponents of the practice believe this ruling ensures that students are evaluated based on their achievements and academic merit instead of their race.
“The process will be fairer since no one person will have a higher chance of gaining admission over someone else with the same qualifications,” senior Deethya Janjanam said.
However, students also believe that a compromise can be made between considering race while also emphasizing the importance of academic achievement.
¨While I do not believe someone with significantly low and poor statistics should have the right to admission to a top university over someone with more well-qualified statistics, someone with respectable, comparable stats should be further considered when it comes down to it in the university’s hopes of increasing diversity, if the goal is set in place” Simon said.
Several universities are trying to work around this ban by including diversity essays in their application, and others have released statements promising to uphold campus diversity regardless of the ruling. For example, UT Austin said they remain “committed to offering an exceptional education to students from all backgrounds.”
While the ruling may have banned the practice of affirmative action, the debate over its need is far from over. Whether you believe the ban is a step in the right direction or damaging to the admissions process, this transformation can heavily impact how applications are looked at this coming academic year and for the years to come.
