Harvard University Sees A Drop In Black And Latino Admissions

In a great move, Harvard University chose to admit a record number of Asian American students to its class of 2027. But it's also a move that experts are wary of celebrating considering the drop in Black and Latino admissions.

The university recently released a breakdown of the incoming class. It revealed that nearly 30% of admitted applicants are Asian American, and that's a 2.1% jump from the number in 2022.

Admissions Dean William R. Fitzsimmons told The Harvard Crimson that it's been part of a long-term trend and that the "percentages have been going up steadily."

This comes as the Supreme Court has yet to decide on a lawsuit brought against the university by a right-wing group. It alleges that race-conscious admissions discriminate against white as well as Asian students.

Julie Park, an associate professor at the University of Maryland, commented on possible reasons for the trend. According to her, one could be a rise in Asian American legacy admits. It favors children of Harvard alumni in the admissions process and also coincides with a population growth of Asian American young adults and high school graduates in America generally.

Park, who studies racial equity in high education, told NBC News that race-conscious admissions can be "very dynamic and institution-specific."

She noted that under race-conscious admissions, the university has a very sizable Asian American class. It's a natural byproduct that "you're just going to numerically have at Harvard, unless they step away from legacy admissions."

As for the Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard lawsuit alleges that the university's race-conscious admissions process doesn't favor Asian students. The Supreme Court heard the case in October 2022.

Experts are concerned that for the second year in a row at the Ivy League university, Black and Latino admits having gone down. They comprised only 15.3% and 11.3% of Black and Latino admits.

Park said that while you have seen growth in the Asian American high school graduate population, it is "nothing compared" to the Latinx population's growth.

So, according to her, it's concerning that you're not seeing that "similar uptick in admitted students among the Black and Latinx students."