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Recruit to Reject? Harvard and African American Applicants

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  • Arcidiacono, Peter

    (Duke University)

  • Kinsler, Josh

    (University of Georgia)

  • Ransom, Tyler

    (University of Oklahoma)

Abstract

Over the past 20 years, elite colleges in the US have seen dramatic increases in applications. We provide context for part of this trend using detailed data on Harvard University that was unsealed as part of the SFFA v. Harvard lawsuit. We show that Harvard encourages applications from many students who effectively have no chance of being admitted, and that this is particularly true for African Americans. African American applications soared beginning with the Class of 2009, with the increase driven by those with lower SAT scores. Yet there was little change in the share of admits who were African American. We show that this change in applicant behavior resulted in substantial convergence in the overall admissions rates across races yet no change in the large cross-race differences in admissions rates for high-SAT applicants.

Suggested Citation

  • Arcidiacono, Peter & Kinsler, Josh & Ransom, Tyler, 2019. "Recruit to Reject? Harvard and African American Applicants," IZA Discussion Papers 12750, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12750
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Peter Arcidiacono & Josh Kinsler & Tyler Ransom, 2024. "Divergent: The Time Path of Legacy and Athlete Admissions at Harvard," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 59(3), pages 653-683.
    2. Peter Arcidiacono & Josh Kinsler & Tyler Ransom, 2022. "Legacy and Athlete Preferences at Harvard," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(1), pages 133-156.
    3. Brian Knight & Nathan Schiff, 2022. "Reducing Frictions in College Admissions: Evidence from the Common Application," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 14(1), pages 179-206, February.
    4. Timothy N. Bond & George Bulman & Xiaoxiao Li & Jonathan Smith, 2018. "Updating Human Capital Decisions: Evidence from SAT Score Shocks and College Applications," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 36(3), pages 807-839.
    5. Scott Carrell & Bruce Sacerdote, 2017. "Why Do College-Going Interventions Work?," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 9(3), pages 124-151, July.
    6. Christine Mulhern, 2021. "Changing College Choices with Personalized Admissions Information at Scale: Evidence on Naviance," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 39(1), pages 219-262.
    7. Eric P. Bettinger & Bridget Terry Long & Philip Oreopoulos & Lisa Sanbonmatsu, 2012. "The Role of Application Assistance and Information in College Decisions: Results from the H&R Block Fafsa Experiment," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 127(3), pages 1205-1242.
    8. Oded Gurantz & Jessica Howell & Michael Hurwitz & Cassandra Larson & Matea Pender & Brooke White, 2021. "A National‐Level Informational Experiment to Promote Enrollment in Selective Colleges," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 40(2), pages 453-479, March.
    9. Smith, Jonathan & Hurwitz, Michael & Howell, Jessica, 2015. "Screening mechanisms and student responses in the college market," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 17-28.
    10. Oded Gurantz & Michael Hurwitz & Jonathan Smith, 2017. "College Enrollment and Completion Among Nationally Recognized High‐Achieving Hispanic Students," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(1), pages 126-153, January.
    11. Gurantz, Oded & Pender, Matea & Mabel, Zachary & Larson, Cassandra & Bettinger, Eric, 2020. "Virtual advising for high-achieving high school students," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    12. Susan Dynarski & C.J. Libassi & Katherine Michelmore & Stephanie Owen, 2018. "Closing the Gap: The Effect of a Targeted, Tuition-Free Promise on College Choices of High-Achieving, Low-Income Students," NBER Working Papers 25349, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    13. Amanda Pallais, 2015. "Small Differences That Matter: Mistakes in Applying to College," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 33(2), pages 493-520.
    14. Albert Yung-Hsu Liu & Ronald G. Ehrenberg & Jesenka Mrdjenovic, 2007. "Diffusion of Common Application Membership and Admissions Outcomes at American Colleges and Universities," NBER Working Papers 13175, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
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    Cited by:

    1. Landaud, Fanny & Maurin, Eric, 2022. "Tracking When Ranking Matters," IZA Discussion Papers 15157, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Melo, Vitor & Rocha, Hugo Vaca Pereira & Sigaud, Liam & Warren, Patrick L. & Gaddis, S. Michael, 2024. "Understanding Discrimination in College Admissions: A Field Experiment," SocArXiv 5ctms, Center for Open Science.
    3. Fanny Landaud & Eric Maurin, 2020. "Aim High and Persevere! Competitive Pressure and Access Gaps in Top Science Graduate Programs," Working Papers halshs-03065958, HAL.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    college recruiting; college applications; inequality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality

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