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Is Harvard Biased Against Asian American Applicants?

Is Harvard Biased Against Asian American Applicants?
5/19/2015
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Suada Kolovic

Applying to some of the top universities in the country is undoubtedly unnerving given the quality of the applicants and the impossibly low acceptance rates. But what if because you were an Asian-American student seeking admission, you were held to an even higher standard? Well, that is what a coalition of 64 organizations is claiming.

According to the compliant, which was filed with the U.S. Education Department's Office for Civil Rights, Harvard University set quotas to keep the numbers of Asian-American students significantly lower than the quality of their application merits. It cites third-party academic research on the SAT exam showing that Asian-Americans have to score on average about 140 points higher than white students, 270 points higher than Hispanic students and 450 points higher than African-American students to equal their chances of gaining admission. "Many studies have indicated that Harvard University has been engaged in systemic and continuous discrimination against Asian-Americans during its very subjective 'holistic' college admissions process," the complaint alleges. The coalition is seeking a federal investigation and is requesting Harvard “immediately cease and desist from using stereotypes, racial biases and other discriminatory means in evaluating Asian-American applicants.” (For updates on this story, check out the Wall Street Journal.)

What are your thoughts on Harvard’s admission process? Share your opinions in the comments section.

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