Affirmative Action: Preferential Treatment
Preferential Treatment
During the college process, students are advised in multiple ways on how to properly present themselves to draw the appeal of colleges. Whether it is by highlighting their awards, accomplishments or talents, students are constantly working on improving their resume. They were told that with good grades, extracurricular activities, and heart-warming essays that they would find success in being admitted into a prestigious university. However, there are various other factors that determine whether one is accepted or denied. An important and often scrutinized factor is the use of affirmative action in admissions. While affirmative action should not hold the weight it does in admissions currently, it seems that people are unaware of the other preferential treatments given to certain students.
Affirmative action in favor of underrepresented minorities has been a controversial topic debated and scrutinized by scholars, the media, and the public for many years. Two other preferential admissions programs have been less controversial but in widespread use; one involving giving an admissions boost to applicants with athletic skills and the other one to children of alumni, commonly known as “legacies”. As these various categories suggest, entry into selective institutions of higher education has never been decided purely on academic criteria—before or after minority affirmative action came into effect. As the term “affirmative action” encompasses the ideal that institutions promote diversity and growth by including historically excluded groups in their admissions, legacy admissions and athletic admissions are considered “affirmative”. (Massey and Mooney 99-117) They do originate from very different motivations, but they bring non-academic criteria that impact the admissions process. Therefore, by attaching the label “affirmative action” to legacy and athletic admissions, it is deliberately underscoring the fact that minorities are not the only social
During the college process, students are advised in multiple ways on how to properly present themselves to draw the appeal of colleges. Whether it is by highlighting their awards, accomplishments or talents, students are constantly working on improving their resume. They were told that with good grades, extracurricular activities, and heart-warming essays that they would find success in being admitted into a prestigious university. However, there are various other factors that determine whether one is accepted or denied. An important and often scrutinized factor is the use of affirmative action in admissions. While affirmative action should not hold the weight it does in admissions currently, it seems that people are unaware of the other preferential treatments given to certain students.
Affirmative action in favor of underrepresented minorities has been a controversial topic debated and scrutinized by scholars, the media, and the public for many years. Two other preferential admissions programs have been less controversial but in widespread use; one involving giving an admissions boost to applicants with athletic skills and the other one to children of alumni, commonly known as “legacies”. As these various categories suggest, entry into selective institutions of higher education has never been decided purely on academic criteria—before or after minority affirmative action came into effect. As the term “affirmative action” encompasses the ideal that institutions promote diversity and growth by including historically excluded groups in their admissions, legacy admissions and athletic admissions are considered “affirmative”. (Massey and Mooney 99-117) They do originate from very different motivations, but they bring non-academic criteria that impact the admissions process. Therefore, by attaching the label “affirmative action” to legacy and athletic admissions, it is deliberately underscoring the fact that minorities are not the only social
Cited: Dolinsky, Anna. "Affirmative Action for Athletes? Jan 12, 2001." The Yale Herald. Web. 18 Nov Quarterly, No. 85 (2004): 1422–1446. Ferris, Eric, Finster, Mark and McDonald, David Analysis of Ncaa Division I-A Graduation Rates.” Research in Higher Education Vol. 45. No. 6 (Sep., 2004): pp. 555-575. 1998. Web. 18 Nov. 2011. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/special/affirm/stories/affirm062198.htm>. Nov. 2011. <http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/23/legacy/>.