What Next? A World Without Affirmative Action Starts Locally

Three students walking into Avery Plaza. Photo courtesy of George Pak.

While affirmative action was perceived to have been deeply embedded in the college admissions process, it surprisingly only affected a few students. Out of the 4,700 colleges and universities in the United States, only 352 schools considered race in their admissions processes in 2014. Approximately half of those 352 schools were considered “most competitive” colleges, as categorized by Barron’s Profile of American Colleges. In comparison, the percentage of solely “competitive” colleges that considered race in admissions dropped from 46 percent to 18 percent between 1994 and 2014.

In practice, affirmative action in the U.S. really only impacted those elite schools that tended to enroll the most socioeconomically privileged students. Affirmative action’s concentrated impact on few students is significant given the fact that a majority of minority students, especially Black and Latino students, do not apply or even attend these elite schools for reasons ranging from a lack of funding to a desire to stay closer to home. Over the last 25 years, 56.2 percent of public four-year college students attended colleges under an hour’s drive away from their homes. 

While affirmative action made a difference for a small number of students, there is no doubt that it did play a large role in increasing diversity within historically unreachable schools by providing opportunities for many marginalized students. After receiving admission into top-tier institutions, the number of low-income students who are typically underserved and underrepresented in higher education completed their degrees at higher rates and earned as much as their wealthier peers post-graduation. 

Instead, the lack of minority applications and acceptances demonstrates that the way equitable education is perceived and achieved must be pivoted to meet students’ needs from the very beginning of their academic journeys. In a post-affirmative action world, resources must be refocused to bolster students’ academic and personal components of their university applications. 

Admissions criteria can range from high school course load to extracurricular activities, but grades remain the most significant factor in decisions across the board. The National Association of College Admission Counseling’s (NACAC) 2023 report on the state of college admissions reported that in the fall 2023 admissions cycle, 60 to 75 percent of colleges will be attributing considerable importance to high school grades and the strength of students’ high school curriculum. NACAC’s 2019 report also noted that 58.4 percent of colleges answered that race and ethnicity did not play a role in the admissions process. 

These high academic standards place demanding expectations on minority students, who especially face barriers to attaining this kind of academic performance. For example, Black and Latino students makeup 15 percent and 25 percent, respectively, of all high schoolers across the U.S. Yet, only 9 percent of students taking at least one Advanced Placement (A.P.)  course are Black, and only 21 percent are Latino. This pattern can be attributed, in part, to the fact that minority students typically attend schools with less access to such resources. For instance, 35.5 percent of American Indian or Alaska Native students attend a school that offers no A.P. courses, which is greater than the national average of 14.8 percent. Even in schools where minority students have access to A.P. and honors coursework, they tend to underperform as compared to their peers. For every 1,000 public school students, 215 Asian students pass an A.P. test compared to only 21 Black students and 51 Latino students. 

While A.P. courses are not absolutely indicative of college performance, they are important for the academic achievement and journey of high school students. Enrolling in an A.P. level course exposes students to a more challenging environment, especially for minority students who are typically discouraged from taking higher-level courses. A.P. courses have also been linked to benefits ranging from greater self-esteem to further engagement in the classroom and fewer absences. The opportunity gap in A.P. courses for minority students indicates a clear disadvantage in the admissions process and emphasizes the need for reform. Without access to these A.P. courses, minority students lack the critical challenging engagement with their learning that is important to both the admissions process and their academic success. 

These opportunity gaps can be attributed to a variety of factors, but the primary concern that must be addressed is public school funding. Student performance in schools largely correlates with the funding of their respective high schools. While the proportion of minority students attending various schools differs by state, minority students are generally the ones most impacted by this underfunding crisis. For instance, The Education Trust finds that districts with the most students of color on average receive 16 percent less state and local funding than the districts with the fewest students of color. 

This kind of inaccessibility to funding and coursework adds to the continuing problem elite colleges face in attaining students of color in a world with or without affirmative action. Holding minority students to the same standards as their peers, even though they face unique barriers and challenges to said standards, is an important factor colleges must adapt to in the new admissions process. 

Through increased school funding, schools can focus on allocating resources toward closing this achievement gap in the form of increased access to A.P. courses and academic support for struggling students at earlier stages. In the wake of the pandemic and decreasing test scores, schools have been scrambling to find solutions and funds to hire new tutors and staff to keep up with the country’s growing learning gap, especially as it pertains to math curriculum. The National Assessment of Educational Progress found that in 2022, only 35 percent of fourth grade students were proficient in math, which dropped the eighth grade proficiency level to 26 percent and increased the achievement gap between white and minority students. With an increasing gap in achievement, it is important to focus on improving school funding to close these gaps. 

In addition to their academic profile, college applicants also have room to express themselves through their application’s personal component. While the Supreme Court dismantled race-conscious admissions, applicants are still able to discuss in their essays how their race or identity shapes their experiences. Chief Justice John Roberts specifically noted this in the June opinion when he indicated that admissions officers were not prohibited from considering how an applicant’s race may have affected their experiences or outlook on life. The consideration of essays by admissions officers must remain race-neutral, but applicants may discuss their race or other identity as it relates to a bigger concept or personal quality they can contribute to the university, like resilience.

This loophole has motivated many colleges to adapt essay prompts encouraging applicants to discuss these experiences in a way that illustrates their identity and core values. For example, in the current admissions cycle, Emory University has adapted an essay prompt asking applicants to “reflect on a personal experience where [they] intentionally expanded [their] cultural awareness.” While these kinds of essays are important, it’s crucial that applicants approach them with the intention of reflecting on their experiences rather than explicitly discussing only their race. Since admissions officers cannot consider race in their decisions, the best way for applicants to make the most impact with the space provided to them is to discuss the qualities and lessons they gained from said experiences.

While these kinds of approaches are very applicant focused, there are still reforms at the institutional level that are important for ensuring that the post-affirmative action world results in equally diverse student bodies. One such reform entails the end of legacy admissions, a long-awaited step toward diversity. By ending legacy admissions, more spots open up for the consideration of minority applicants, instead of the rich elite who are typically admitted through legacy admissions. Data from Education Reform Now finds that applying as a legacy admissions student is equivalent to a 160 point boost on the SAT, demonstrating that considering legacy status in admissions provides an unnecessary advantage to the already advantaged. 

At its core, affirmative action is intended to achieve the basic goals of diversification and greater opportunities for marginalized communities. Thus, a post-affirmative action world demands pivoting resources to bolster students’ academics and college applications in a way that values their individual experiences and the gravity of diversity. 

Shanthi Ashok (BC ’27) is a staff writer at CPR and an aspiring economics and computer science major from Fairfax, Virginia. Her interests include education policy and racial justice.