Basic Fact Sheet on the 2012 Admissions Policy

DIVERSITY AT RISK: WHY THE 2012 ADMISSIONS POLICY SHOULD BE RESCINDED

+ Starting in 2012, the percentage of California students eligible for guaranteed admission to the UC system will decrease from 12.5% to 10%. The new policy eliminates the requirement for 2 SAT II Subject Tests and creates a new category of students who are “entitled to a review of application, but not guaranteed admission.“

+ If the policy had been in effect in 2007, 18,000 fewer California high school students would have been eligible for guaranteed admission to the UC system.

+ The new criteria cut eligibility for guaranteed admission across the board, but minorities bear an inequitable share of the lost guarantees. If the policy had been in effect in 2007, 50% fewer African Americans, 42% fewer Chicano/Latinos, 41% fewer Filipinos, 39% fewer Pacific Islanders, and 36% fewer Asian Americans would have been eligible for guaranteed admission. The number of whites would decrease only 23%. (These declines are not a projected simulation, but based purely on a bright-line test of eligibility).

+ The policy results in increased reliance on SAT Reasoning Test Scores to determine eligibility for guaranteed admission.

+ Although the policy creates a more diverse pool of students “eligible for review,“ this change will fail to increase diversity since comprehensive review at UC campuses is already under pressure to decrease in-state enrollment and increase out-of-state enrollment. Reducing the percentage of CA students guaranteed admission to UC and replacing it with “entitlement to review” exposes in-state enrollment to systematic erosion during times of budget crisis. (Already at UC Berkeley, the number of Latino freshmen who enroll next year could decline by 18%, the number of black freshmen by 13%, and the number of first-generation freshmen by 15%).

+ Although Yudof and the administration claim that this policy will increase diversity at UC, the results of three simulation studies suggest that this policy will either have "race neutral" effects or will decrease African American enrollment anywhere from 27%-33%, decrease Latino enrollment by nearly 3%, and decrease Asian American enrollment by 11%. Proposition 209, which eliminated affirmative action in 1998, led to a decline in African American admissions by 12.6%.

Where can I find information that supports the policy? http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/eligibilitychanges/faqs.html

HOW CAN I GET INVOLVED?

Come to our next organizing meeting on Tuesday, March 2nd from 4-6 PM in the Multicultural Center (MLK Student Union)

For more info, contact API Education and Languages Now! (apielnow@gmail.com or http://apielnow.blogspot.com)