An affirmative-action lawsuit against Harvard University by an Asian-American students group has captured national attention and sparked a vigorous debate. Now Yale University finds itself in the crosshairs following a new federal complaint filed against it and similar schools.
The more recent complaint, brought by the Asian American Coalition for Education, alleges that Yale discriminates specifically and systematically against applications with an Asian background, holding them to a higher standard throughout the admissions process.
According to the Yale Daily News, the complaint attacked Yale’s self-described “holistic” approach to admissions, in which the Office of Admissions claims to review each application as a “comprehensive picture” of a student, rather than focus on individual test scores, extracurricular activities or recommendations. The Department of Education last month revealed an investigation into Yale’s admissions practices.
“While describing the process as ‘holistic,’ Yale … [does] not reveal the inner workings of their admissions procedures; in fact, they are shrouded in secrecy,” the complaint states.
But according to data from the Office of Institutional Research, the percentage of accepted Asian-American students at Yale increased from 2003 to 2017. During that period, the percentage jumped from 13.4 to 18.9 percent of admitted students. Asian-American students make up 21.7 percent of the Yale College class of 2022.
Now being heard in federal district court in Boston, the Harvard lawsuit was originally filed in 2014 and alleges a pattern of systemic discrimination against Asian-American applicants, an allegation the Cambridge, Mass. school denies. The action is widely viewed as a referendum on affirmative action in college admissions nationwide.
A 2016 Gallup Poll said that 70 percent of Americans support exclusively merit-based admissions to institutions of higher learning.
Contact Michael C. Bingham at mbingham@newhavenbiz.com
