Racism is not something new. It’s been around for ages and will never go away. College is no exception. Colleges want a “diverse climate;” they’re beginning to reject students of certain races. Deserving Asian American and white students have been rejected from countless colleges; they reject these students and offer spots to less credentialed Black and Hispanic students. There are lots of reasons that applicants don’t get into college but Affirmative Action has a much bigger effect than appreciated.

Affirmative action has a larger impact in the admissions process than one would expect. According to Collegevine, “Affirmative action … plays a part in admissions decisions at the nation’s top-tier educational institutions, which are traditionally thought of as gateways to influential careers in industry, education, and government. This is why schools such as the University of Michigan, the University of Texas, and Harvard University have been the subject of litigation.” Essentially, applicants’ grades and test scores are being overlooked. As a result these rejected applicants are suing. 

A New Yorker article quoted recent developments in court cases involving Harvard University versus rejected Asian American applicants: “The school’s admissions program survived ‘strict scrutiny,’ meaning that Burroughs found that its use of race was necessary to serve the school’s compelling interest in diversity, particularly its interest in enrolling a critical mass of underrepresented minorities, such as African-American and Latino students.” Despite setbacks these applicants continue to fight for a fair application process. 

According to NPR radio, “Asian American and white … students have 1/10 to 1⁄4 of the likelihood of admission as African American applicants with comparable academic credentials.” White and Asian American students have a greater chance of getting rejected from colleges simply because of their appearance. 

Collegevine also wrote, “The Cons of Affirmative Action in College Admissions: It creates reverse discrimination, the paradox of affirmative action is that it seeks to eliminate inequality by enabling positive discrimination. One criticism of affirmative action is that it doesn’t account for income—Richard Kahlenberg, senior fellow at the Century Foundation, found that 71% of Harvard’s Black and Latino students come from wealthy backgrounds. And it Reinforces Stereotypes because affirmative action assists underrepresented groups, it can lead people to believe these groups require assistance to succeed.” Affirmative action is not positive; it creates massive amounts of inequality. We need to take action and realize that students aren’t getting the education they deserve. 

College admissions officers need to ignore race, ethnicity and religious beliefs when choosing who they want to admit into their college. Students shouldn’t be chosen by how they look but rather by what they know. The admissions process into colleges should be based solely on test scores and grades, not how someone appears.