Colleges' Perspective on Diversity in Admissions

In this episode we’re talking about the Supreme Court’s recent decision to strike down race-conscious admission and what the implications might be for colleges, students applying to those colleges, and the counselors who advise them. And what better person to talk about it with than Jay Rosner, whose entire career has been devoted to the intersection of law and college admissions. This is the first in a series where we’ll be exploring the impacts of the SCOTUS decision from a variety of perspectives.

Jay Rosner and I get into: 

• What the affirmative action ruling practically means 

• How it might impact college admissions, including for underrepresented students

• We address some students’ fears about whether or not they should mention their race, or share experiences directly related to their race or culture in their college applications

• I ask Jay: “Who is the burden on here—students or the colleges themselves?” 

• We also talked about how counselors should advise students

For those of you who have never met Jay:

1. As the Executive Director of The Princeton Review Foundation, he has developed programs jointly with such organizations as the NAACP, the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, College and Graduate Horizons (serving Native American students) and the Asian Pacific Fund.

2. Jay's career has combined education and law, with an emphasis on student advocacy. He has testified before state legislative committees in California, Texas, Illinois and New Jersey, and as an expert witness in cases involving testing.

3. Before attending law school, Jay was a public high school math teacher. Jay holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, a JD from Widener University, and is the proud father of two grown daughters.

• [0:53] Intro

• [1:30] Who is Jay Rosner? 

• [2:25] A brief history of race-conscious admission

• [4:52] Why is the Supreme Court decision such a big deal? 

• [6:22] What does the ruling actually mean? 

• [7:31] What colleges can and can’t consider after the ruling related to race

• [9:49] How might diversity and inclusivity be affected on college campuses?

• [13:00] Should students even mention race at all in their applications?

• [15:39] Is the burden really on the students or on the colleges?

• [17:20] How can students speak to the ways race has impacted their lives?

• [18:50] Advice to counselors on guiding students on their college applications

• [21:38] Do colleges still want to enroll a diverse population of students? 

• [23:36] What might colleges learn from the University of California, where race-conscious admission was banned in 1996?

• [26:45] Jay’s thoughts about and hopes for the future 

• [28:28] What are folks not talking about?

• [31:03] Final takeaways for students and counselors

Example of How to Explain (Briefly) Context on Your Testing in the Additional Info Section of Your Common App

AP Physics I

• I was the first student at my school to ever pass the AP Physics I exam.

• There were two issues during the test: 1) the test began late because the previous test (AP Spanish) ran long and 2) during the AP Physics I exam, the fire alarms went off and continued for about an hour (the second half of the test). Unfortunately, this was the only time the test was offered and I was nonetheless proud of my score.

Highest SAT Score in My Class

• Scored a 1910 on old SAT (570 CR, 730 Math, 610 WR), which was the highest overall test score in my grade.