Elite Universities Take Asian Students for Granted

Asian American students are the most overrepresented cohort on elite university campuses by far. Students who are nationals of China, India, and South Korea enroll at American universities at much higher rates than any other region on the planet. Universities are happy to accept their full-paying tuition dollars, and like their Asian-American counterparts, they’re taken for granted.

Regardless of the merits of claims of discrimination in recent lawsuits against Harvard and others, elite universities know that they will turn away many more Asians than they can admit relative to other groups. That’s because Asians apply in higher numbers per capita.

Nowadays, holistic review further marginalizes the underserved communities that elite universities purport to seek. Asian American and affluent international families who can afford the highly specialized training and education requisite to getting in and full-pay tuition are gaining admission to and enrolling at historically white universities.

Although they make up an increasingly large presence on elite college campuses, Asian Americans aren’t the “people of color” universities have in mind, despite many being first- or second-generation immigrants. Asian students come from a wide variety of backgrounds, mother tongues, and ancestral homes. They’re treated like monoliths by the white dominant culture and are largely excluded from conversations regarding diversity.

Asian Americans experience racism in their daily lives, especially in elite high schools and college campuses where white students perceive them as a threat to their hegemony. Bigotry has become increasingly normalized following COVID-19 and rhetoric like “the China virus” or Trump’s “Kungflu.” Hate crimes against Asian Americans reached record levels in 2020 and continue into 2021. 

The Supreme Court case Korematsu v. the United States upheld the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans during World War II. Korematsu remained legal precedent until a 2018 repudiation by Chief Justice John Roberts in Trump v. Hawaii, which overturned Trump’s Middle East travel ban. Elite universities can take for granted that Asian students will apply in record numbers, so they largely fall outside of recruitment efforts targeting diverse populations. Elite universities do not care about most of their students, but they care about Asians the least.

Diversity-themed essays are also problematic for white and Asian students from affluent families who may be reluctant to discuss their identity or feel guilt based on their background. Asian Americans and Asian diaspora students are excluded from institutional commitments to diversity. I routinely have conversations with Asian students who want to discuss their culture. Yet, they are reluctant to share their background, family history, mother tongue (or lack thereof), art forms, favorite foods, religious practices, etc.

The assumption motivating their insecurity is simple. Is it okay to be Asian?

I encourage worried Asian applicants that every story is unique. I say, “Please don’t feel ashamed, and it’s okay to be you.” They fear judgment from anonymous admissions reviewers for being “yet another high-achieving Asian” stereotype. A vibrant variety of people and diverse backgrounds fall under the imperfect and overly broad Asian American classification invented by the US Census Bureau.

There is an added pressure to excel academically to fit the model-minority mold. When 35 percent of Asian SAT takers score over a 700 on the math section, scoring slightly lower but still objectively very good places good-but-not-great Asian applicants at a disadvantage relative to students from other ethnicities. Asian communities suspect that universities impose higher academic expectations relative to different races. Moreover, seeming “too Asian” is perceived as a detriment. Popular blog posts encourage them to seem “less Asian.” Many Asians adopt traditionally white interests, such as football or cheerleading, to appear “well rounded.”

Because Asians are overrepresented on many college campuses, diversity-themed essays aren’t written principally with their backgrounds in mind. They don’t “bring diversity” to campus, like Hispanic or black students who are encouraged to embrace and express their heritage. Many Asian applicants write essays demonstrating how they’ve “adapted” to and assimilated with the dominant white culture. If culture or heritage plays little if any role in one’s life, then no problem. The issue is for the students who practice Indian Classical dancing or celebrate Lunar New Year rather than Christmas who feel reluctant to share their experiences.

Although nothing conclusive came from lawsuits on behalf of Asian families against Harvard, the perception of an Asian disadvantage is real. That affects what students write in their essays and the activities they pursue for their resumes. If universities don’t care about most of their applicants, I’m inclined to conclude that they probably care about Asians the least.

It’s strange to be a straight, white, and not particularly politically correct cis male who encourages Asians, transgender people, and otherwise marginalized students that they can and should feel empowered to share about their identities. A university potentially judging you for being “too Asian” or some other nonsense may not be a campus worth attending anyway. There are plenty of universities that would love to have you, which goes for students everywhere, regardless of their background or political beliefs. My challenge to you is to find a university where you feel you can express yourself fully and without reservations.