Reflections on the Supreme Court’s Ruling on Affirmative Action
When the Supreme Court released their decision to prohibit the consideration of race in the college admission process a few weeks ago, it came as no surprise. And yet, I felt a sense of disappointment for my field and I know many others have publicly shared the same sentiment. I’m going to try to keep this post relatively brief, and maybe even objective, as I’m still processing and reading articles, but there have been a lot of conversations taking place about the future of college admissions. I don’t want to get into the political or even legal aspect of this decision, as neither are my areas of expertise. I do know college admissions though, so I’ll keep the focus on that.
Diversity of experience will still be valued
Colleges responded swiftly to address the Court’s ruling and to affirm that “diversity of lived experience” would still be valued in their admissions processes. Harvard University and the University of North Carolina released separate statements, as they were the focus of the lawsuits, but many other colleges and universities have made official statements. Go ahead and look them up and you’ll discover they sound very similar to one another. It sounds like higher education institutions are as united as ever to promote an equitable process that takes context into consideration. To be clear, they will adhere to the Court’s decision. But at the same time, admissions offices can develop practices and procedures that conform to new laws while reaffirming their institution’s core values.
Application components may change
I anticipate that more colleges will likely add or change their supplemental essay topics so applicants can address their unique experiences. I’m not sure if any of the demographic information will be eliminated altogether, but in order to assess the lived experiences, the application will have to ask about them. The community essay was already becoming a trendy topic and perhaps we’ll see more of the same.
For colleges that do not make any changes, I wonder how much that will affect what a student chooses to write about in their Common Application essay. I assume it will be significant. To my point, here’s the topic of the first prompt:
“Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story.”
Looks like an opportunity to share a lived experience to me. Maybe the Common Application will change entirely, though I don’t know if that will take place this year. We are two weeks away from the the application being available for the Class of 2024, but we’ll see what happens the following year.
No, it will not be easier to get into a highly selective college
Back to reality. It will still be very difficult to be admitted to a highly selective institution, if you have those aspirations. Spots did not suddenly open up and there’s still the issue of “hooked” applicants that may or may not be the next issue that gets addressed, but I digress.
If you are applying to college this year, you still need to run your own race. Don’t worry about your friend’s updated college plan or who’s applying early decision where. This has always been about your own journey and the recent ruling shouldn’t affect your expectations, preferences, or personal values.
When colleges became test optional, many assumed that higher scores would automatically be favored over no scores, but I’ve seen no evidence supporting that (even though I’ve had my own suspicions). Based on how colleges have responded, the admissions process is going to be as subjective as ever and the admissions mystique will live on. This should not come as a surprise.