The Supreme Court Ruling on Affirmative Action
The Supreme Court recently declared that affirmative action is
a legal component of college admissions...but not always. If
you've been trying to sort through quotes from lawyers,
administrators and politicians to figure out what the decision
means for you, you have our sympathy. Luckily, we have an expert
who agreed to help out.
Q: Just what exactly was deemed legal and
illegal?
A: The University of Michigan undergrad
admissions program awarded points for separate parts of an
application. Any student that received 100 points out of 150 was
generally accepted. Grades counted for 80, SAT scores for 12, and
so on. Every applicant from an underrepresented minority group or
predominantly minority high school received 20 points
automatically, regardless of the rest of the application. The
Court ruled this system and any like it unconstitutional, because
they are constructed "in a way that makes race or ethnicity the
defining feature of the application."
The Court validated The University of Michigan Law School�s
admissions policy in a separate decision because it considered
each application individually, measuring race as one component of
an applicant�s larger ability to contribute to the program. This
will likely become the framework for both undergrad and grad
admissions departments across the country. Specifically, it
forces larger programs to read each and every application.
"The court is saying affirmative action is OK, just don't make
it automatic. That is a very fine line," said Seppy Basili,
Kaplan Vice-President and college admissions expert.
Q: How will undergrad admissions change?
A: Some competitive state schools—which
typically admit about half their applicants—will have to revise
their admissions process and procedures. The majority of
undergrad admissions programs won�t change because they fall into
the category deemed constitutional by the Court.
The University of Michigan and schools with similarly situated
admissions departments will now have to allocate more resources
to ensure personal consideration is given to each application. If
you�re applying to such a school, your essay, extracurricular
activities and intangibles will likely be given more
consideration than they would have previously.
Q: Will these universities experience
delays in their admissions cycle?
A: They shouldn't. The University of Michigan
and others have had plenty of time to develop contingency plans,
and the changes demanded by the Court aren't as drastic as many
universities feared they would be. University of Michigan
President Mary Sue Coleman was quoted on CNN.com as saying,
"We're going to be working on it as soon as we return to campus.
And we will have the new policy in place this fall."
Q: Will the increased costs of personalized
application handling be passed onto undergrads in the form of
tuition or fees?
A: The cost of doing business just went up at
state universities and elite public institutions across the
country," said Basili. One very likely outcome is that
universities will pass their increased administrative costs
through to parents and students by raising application fees. If
not, it is likely that tuition and school fees would go up.
Q: Does this decision change admissions
policies for legacies and athletes?
A: Neither group mentioned is subject to
constitutional protection, so schools can continue to create
entering classes as they have been.
