The Los Angeles Times is running an article describing the challenges faced by Asian Americans as they apply for acceptance to top colleges.
The article describes the impact that their race and ethnicity has on their SAT scores:
Lee's next slide shows three columns of numbers from a Princeton University study that tried to measure how race and ethnicity affect admissions by using SAT scores as a benchmark. It uses the term “bonus” to describe how many extra SAT points an applicant's race is worth.
She points to the first column. African Americans received a “bonus” of 230 points, Lee says.
She points to the second column. “Hispanics received a bonus of 185 points.”
The last column draws gasps. Asian Americans, Lee says, are penalized by 50 points — in other words, they had to do that much better to win admission.
“Do Asians need higher test scores? Is it harder for Asians to get into college? The answer is yes,” Lee says.
A core tenet of the American philosophy, even from before the days of the Founding Fathers, is that through hard work and excellence one should be able to obtain success in life. But is this ideal even possible when certain underachieving groups are given artificial advantages, while those with the most merit are artificially held back?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 02 2015, @11:46AM
They are a factor among other factors, not arbitrary.
Opinion. If this was true, the test could be fixed. Or are arbitrary bonuses and penalties the way to soften the "cultural bias"?
Really? I guess black students that originally challenged segregation weren't making demands to be let in past racist admissions systems.
Many colleges have an interest in profit. A huge student body with a high dropout rate is profitable. Students that got in with much lower SAT scores will have a higher dropout rate. Whoops! I forgot that "SAT scores are a rather arbitrary measure of a students potential'!
A 280 pt difference (between a black and asian student) is hardly marginal. What is true is that the asian students have higher SAT scores, and have to compete among themselves rather than the general population.
We wouldn't want whites to complain about racism. Racism against whites doesn't exist!
Just off-topic facts.
Here's the reporter's contact page [latimes.com] and email [mailto]. I'm sure he'll want to correct the article using your suggestions.
The study [princeton.edu] cited in the LA Times article has a solution you would support:
If you believe that blacks are being incarcerated unjustly, perhaps lowering those rates would result in an eventual, immediate, and fair increase in admissions?
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 02 2015, @06:45PM
Many colleges have an interest in profit. A huge student body with a high dropout rate is profitable. Students that got in with much lower SAT scores will have a higher dropout rate.
"I am not a racist because University of Phoenix!" Good one!