Colleges would have to scrap preferences for legacy applicants and student athletes to improve racial diversity if the U.S. Supreme Court ends affirmative action in admissions, even if they consider other factors such as class, a new study found.
The share of Black and Latino students admitted to selective schools under an alternative admissions process that takes into account socioeconomic level, for example, would only exceed current levels if schools scrapped preferences for children of alumni and athletes, according to a Georgetown University study released Tuesday. Indigenous student populations would still suffer under most scenarios, the study found.
“Our results show what’s possible,” said Zack Mabel, report co-author and research professor at Georgetown’s Center on Education and the Workforce. “In order to achieve the types of diversity gains, both in terms of race and class that we were able to demonstrate really requires a fundamental redesign of the way that selective colleges are evaluating applicants and who they're considering for admissions.”
