Poll: 63% of Americans Say Race Should Play a Role in College Admissions

Most U.S. adults say there shouldn’t be a race ban in college admissions but its role should be small, a new poll finds.

According to a recent survey conducted in May by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 63% of adults believe that colleges should be allowed to consider race or ethnicity as a factor in admissions. The poll found little divide along political or racial lines. The survey results come as the Supreme Court will soon decide the fate of affirmative action in lawsuits challenging admissions systems at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina.

MOST AMERICANS SAY ROLE OF RACE IN ADMISSIONS SHOULD BE SMALL

While most Americans agree that race should be a factor in college admissions, a majority also say it should be of little importance.

The most important factor, according to the poll, was high school grades (which 63% of adults rated as “extremely/very important.”) Standardized test scores was ranked as second most important, and ability to afford tuition was third.

WHAT BOTH SIDES SAY

Those for affirmative action argue that such policies help to level the playing field in college admissions.

Layla Trombley, who is half black, says white students have long had the upper hand in admissions due to institutional racism.

“It seems like it’s hard to get in if you don’t have that help, just because we’re not traditionally thought of as industrious or smart or hardworking,” she says.

Andrew Holko, of Georgia, says he sees affirmative action as a tool to help offset the imbalances within America’s public school system—where he says wealthy, white districts tend to get more money than black districts.

“They don’t have computers to study with,” Holko, who is white and describes himself as politically independent, says. “They don’t have tutoring services available. He added: “Affirmative action is necessary to overcome those disparities.”

Others argue that college admissions should be based solely on merit, such as grades, test scores, and extracurriculars.

“I don’t think race should have anything in the world to do with it,” Jana Winston, of Batesburg-Leesville, who is half white and half Cherokee, says. “There’s a lot of kids that work really, really hard, and I don’t like the idea of them being pushed out of the way just because the college feels like they need to do something politically correct.”

Sources: AP News, Reuters