One group definitely faces prejudice in college admissions. It's not who you think it is.
HERE'S THE ASIAN STORY, WHICH I TOOK NOTE OF BECAUSE I HAVE TWO ASIAN NEPHEWS, whom I adore.
Do Harvard and other elite universities illegally discriminate against Asian-American applicants?
I’m not sure. But there’s another group of people who definitely face routine prejudice in
college admissions. They’re the quiet types who keep to themselves, often preferring a relaxed evening at home to a rowdy night out. They like to study alone, not in groups. And they’re often the last ones to speak up in class.
I’m talking about introverts, of course. And if there’s one thing we’ve learned from reports on the recent lawsuit against Harvard University’s admission system, it’s that introverts routinely get the short end of the stick.
The lawsuit alleges that Harvard has engaged in unlawful “racial balancing” by systematically discriminating against Asian-Americans, who were given lower “personality” scores by admission officers. It’s a hard charge to prove. If an Asian applicant received a lower personality score, how can we know if that’s because she was Asian?
Consider this example, which The New York Times drew from the hundreds of documents that have been filed in the Harvard lawsuit. An Asian-American applicant was described as a “hard worker,” but “would she relax and have any fun?”
Other Asian-American candidates were characterized the same way — industrious and high-achieving but often lacking in “distinguishing excellence” (or “DE” in admissions shorthand). Nor were they likely to be seen as “leaders,” the figures who stand out from the crowd by standing in front of it.
MORE HERE:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/commentary/ct-perspec-shy-asian-americans-college-admissions-discrimination-0815-story.html
And that’s what our elite schools are looking for, unabashedly and unapologetically. When Harvard says it wants people with a “positive personality” who are “widely respected,” two other criteria the Times extracted from the court filings, it’s not talking about the kid who will stay in her dorm room on Saturday night to study or watch a video. Introverts aren’t always shy — sometimes they can be quite chatty — but they also need time alone.
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