University of Minnesota drops race from admissions after SCOTUS ruling

The University of Minnesota-Twin Cities will no longer consider race, university employment, or legacy in its admissions process.

The university announced its updated holistic admissions review process in response to the Supreme Court banning race-based affirmative action in college admissions. 

”The University of Minnesota Twin Cities has an updated undergraduate admissions holistic review practice,” the statement read. “As part of the recent Supreme Court decision on race-conscious admissions and along with our standard annual review of undergraduate admission practice, we no longer consider race and ethnicity, family attendance or employment at the University as context factors.”

Instead of race or ethnicity, the university will consider other factors. These include accomplishments, extra-curricular activities, first-generation student status, contribution to the diversity of a student body, and extenuating circumstances. 

The admissions website and the Director of Media Relations, Jake Ricker, stated that race and ethnicity will be optional information used for “recruitment and communication purposes about programs and services offered,” but will not be provided to reviewers or “considered” during the admissions process. 

[RELATED: Majority of Americans oppose race-based admissions, according to poll]

The letter, sent to students, staff, and faculty on June 29, acknowledged the university’s limitation on accepting students based on race or ethnicity, adding “we remain committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice on all our campuses.” 

Charbel Maroun, UMN’s Turning Point USA Chapter President, says he believes getting rid of affirmative action is a good thing. “All discrimination nowadays is an excuse to play the victim and unfortunately, I don’t think most people do it on purpose. It’s been implanted in their brains,” he told Campus Reform. “Affirmative action gets rid of people who have worked hard and earned an education and who want to be successful.” 

In February 2023, a poll revealed that 62% of Americans agreed that race should not be considered during the college admission process. 

Further, a Pew Research Center poll in April 2022 revealed that 68% of Hispanics, 63% of Asian Americans, and 59% of Black Americans believe race-based admissions should be eliminated.

In February, ahead of the Supreme Court decision, Campus Reform Higher Education Fellow Adam Ellwanger reasoned that affirmative action in admissions ismisguided. “Having a diverse student population does have benefits,” Ellwanger wrote. “When that diversity is achieved by means that are prejudicial rather than meritocratic, the entire campus community suffers.” 

[RELATED: NAACP calls on colleges to pledge ‘Diversity No Matter What’ following SCOTUS ruling]

The university also plans to eliminate the consideration of “legacies” during the admissions process. According to MPR News, Director of University Student Government and Legislative Affairs Carter Yost stated that, “Legacy admissions were an unnecessary and unfair leg-up, that had nothing to do with merit, or someone’s experiences.” 

Campus Reform reached out to all relevant parties for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.