Enrollment of students of color has declined “significantly” at elite institutions but has risen “almost everywhere else,” says a new analysis of the impact of the 2023 Supreme Court ruling that ended affirmative action in higher ed admissions.
The biggest drops occurred at Ivy Plus schools, a group that includes Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Chicago. However, Black first-year student enrollment has soared at state flagships such as Louisiana State University and the University of Mississippi, according to “The Future of Fair Admissions” report from the nonprofit Class Action.
Hispanic enrollment jumped by more than a third at the University of Tennessee and the University of South Carolina, noted the report, which compares first-time enrollments of more than three million freshmen in 2022 and 2023 to 2024 at over 3,000 institutions.
These shifts reflect a “cascade effect” after the 2023 Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College case, also known as “SFFA.” High-achieving students of color who might have been accepted by elite schools prior to the decision enrolled in less selective colleges and universities after the ruling.
Here are some other findings from the Class Action report:
- Total enrollment and Black enrollment declined at historically Black colleges and universities.
- Hispanic enrollment increased at more selective institutions that did practice legacy preferences and declined at those that did.
- The number and share of white and Asian American freshmen remained flat, although there was a slight uptick for Asian American first-year students at Ivy Plus schools.
- There was a slight shift in Black freshman enrollment toward institutions with lower graduation rates and expected earnings after college.
The numbers prove that college admissions were never “race-based,” the report contends.
“College admissions and enrollment occur within a complex ecosystem where the actions and decisions of admissions officers, financial aid officers, and students themselves shape and are shaped by each other,” the report concludes.
Class Action maintains a post-affirmative action Enrollment Dashboard on its website. Users can view enrollment by race and gender at more than 3,000 institutions.
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