Legacy admissions, a controversial yet entrenched practice in U.S. higher education, have been at the center of numerous debates for decades. While supporters argue that legacy preferences help foster tradition and strengthen alumni engagement, critics denounce it as a form of institutionalized privilege that favors the wealthy and perpetuates inequality.
What Are Legacy Admissions?
Legacy admissions refer to the preferential treatment given to applicants who have familial ties—typically parents, but in some cases grandparents or siblings—to alumni of a particular institution.In practical terms, it means that a student applying to a college or university has an advantage in the admission process solely based on their family’s history with the institution. This practice is most prevalent at elite and highly selective universities, though some public institutions also implement it.
Legacy admissions became widespread in the early 20th century as a way to maintain selectivity and exclusivity. These policies helped shape the demographics of Ivy League and other prestigious institutions, historically ensuring that the wealthy and well-connected had easier access to higher education.
A significant number of colleges and universities continue to uphold legacy preferences in their admissions processes, particularly private and highly selective institutions. These include Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University and Stanford University among others.
The extent of legacy preference varies between institutions. Some limit the advantage to the children of undergraduate alumni, while others extend it to a broader range of family members, including grandchildren, siblings, nieces, and nephews of alumni from both undergraduate and graduate programs. A 2005 study analyzing data from 19 selective schools revealed that, for applicants with similar Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) scores, legacy status increased the likelihood of admission by nearly 20 percentage points.
Legacy Admissions: A Historical Perspective
Legacy admissions, a practice dating back to the 1920s, were introduced by prestigious U.S. universities to ensure continued enrollment of White Anglo-Saxon Protestants. This move came at a time when there was growing concern over the increasing presence of Jewish, Catholic, and Asian students.
By 1992, the California Institute of Technology had entirely rejected legacy preferences. Later on, MIT also confirmed that it did not follow this practice. Among the top 100 liberal arts colleges, Berea College also openly stated it did not favor legacy applicants.
In recent years, several top-tier institutions have phased out legacy admissions. Johns Hopkins University eliminated the policy in 2014, followed by Pomona College in 2017, Amherst College in 2021, and Wesleyan University in 2023.
In 2023, the U.S. Congress saw the introduction of the bipartisan Merit-based Educational Reforms and Institutional Transparency Act, aimed at ending legacy preferences in college admissions across the nation.
Legacy Admissions: An Antithesis to Equality?
The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is the cornerstone of debates surrounding legacy admissions. This clause states that no state shall “deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws,” which has been interpreted as ensuring equality of opportunity in various contexts, including education.
Critics argue that legacy admissions violate the spirit of the Equal Protection Clause by giving an unfair advantage to predominantly white, wealthy applicants, perpetuating historical inequalities. The fact that many prestigious universities uphold legacy admissions, even while ostensibly promoting diversity and meritocracy, has led to accusations of hypocrisy.
Recent Laws and Policy Debates on Legacy Admissions
In recent years, legacy admissions have drawn criticism from various lawmakers and civil rights organizations, leading to several legislative proposals aimed at abolishing the practice.
Colorado Law: In 2021, Colorado became the first state to pass a law prohibiting public universities from considering legacy status in their admissions processes. This marked a significant step towards dismantling the preferential treatment of legacy applicants at the state level.
The Fair College Admissions for Students Act: This was introduced in July 2023 by U.S. lawmakers in response to growing criticism of legacy admissions in colleges and universities. The bill aims to eliminate legacy preferences (which give advantages to the children of alumni) in the college admissions process. The law is meant to promote a more merit-based admissions process and ensure that socio-economic status or family background does not unfairly influence access to higher education. As of now, the act has not yet been passed into law but has generated significant discussion, especially following the Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action in June 2023.
Decoded: SC Ruling on Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action refers to policies and practices aimed at increasing opportunities for historically marginalized groups, particularly in education and employment. The goal is to address past discrimination and promote diversity by giving preferential consideration to underrepresented groups such as racial minorities (primarily African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans) and women.
In the context of college admissions, affirmative action allows schools to consider race and ethnicity as one of several factors in their selection process, with the aim of fostering a diverse student body. The practice has been highly controversial, with critics arguing that it constitutes reverse discrimination against other groups, particularly White and Asian students, while supporters see it as a necessary tool to combat systemic inequality.
Key Moments in U.S. Affirmative Action
1960s-Affirmative action policies were introduced during the Civil Rights Movement under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
1978-Regents of the University of California v. Bakke: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that racial quotas were unconstitutional but allowed race to be considered in admissions.
2003 – Grutter v. Bollinger: The Court upheld the use of race in the University of Michigan Law School admissions process, affirming that diversity is a compelling interest.
2016 – Fisher v. University of Texas: The Court reaffirmed that race-conscious admissions policies are constitutional if narrowly tailored to achieve diversity.
2023 Supreme Court Ruling
In June 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in college admissions in a landmark decision that involved challenges to the race-based admissions policies of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina (UNC). The ruling declared that these policies violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, effectively prohibiting colleges from considering race as a factor in admissions, significantly altering how schools approach diversity efforts.
The case began with two lawsuits filed by the group Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA), which argued that Harvard’s use of race in admissions unfairly discriminated against Asian American applicants, and that UNC’s policies violated the rights of White and Asian applicants by favoring other racial groups. The Supreme Court’s decision concluded that race-conscious admissions practices at both universities were unconstitutional, signaling the end of affirmative action in college admissions across the U.S.
This ruling is expected to significantly alter how schools approach diversity efforts, as they can no longer explicitly factor race into admissions decisions. Many colleges are now exploring race-neutral alternatives, such as giving greater weight to socio-economic status, geographic diversity, and personal hardships, in order to maintain diverse student populations without violating the new legal standards.
The decision marked a major shift in decades of affirmative action precedent and raised questions about the future of diversity in higher education.
The Intersection of Legacy Admissions and Affirmative Action
Legacy admissions and affirmative action exist at opposite ends of the admissions policy spectrum. While affirmative action sought to correct historical inequities by giving a leg up to underrepresented minority students, legacy admissions often have the opposite effect, entrenching existing privileges. The Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action has intensified calls for the abolition of legacy preferences, especially from civil rights groups who argue that the practice runs counter to the goals of creating diverse and inclusive campuses.
Critics argue that eliminating race-based affirmative action while allowing legacy admissions to continue amounts to a double standard. The argument is that while affirmative action was designed to address historical racial inequities, legacy admissions perpetuate a system that overwhelmingly benefits white, affluent students who are already privileged in other ways. This is particularly concerning as studies show that legacy students often have weaker academic profiles than their non-legacy counterparts but are still admitted at disproportionately high rates.
The ruling has reignited the debate over legacy admissions. Critics argue that while affirmative action aimed to level the playing field for underrepresented minorities, legacy admissions do the opposite by giving an unfair advantage to applicants from affluent, typically white families. As affirmative action is dismantled, the spotlight has turned to legacy preferences, with activists and policymakers calling for their abolition as a step toward ensuring fairness in college admissions.
Evolving Landscape of Legacy Admission
According to reports of the Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP), US, approximately one-third of selective four-year colleges in the United States took legacy status into account for first-time students enrolling in the fall of 2022. This practice was particularly common among selective private nonprofit institutions, with 42 percent considering legacy status. Additionally, 15 percent of selective public four-year colleges factored in applicants’ family connections to the institution during the admissions process. In the 2021-2022 academic year, around 2.1 million undergraduate students attended colleges that used legacy status in their admissions criteria, with public four-year colleges representing nearly 40 percent of these students.
However, after the SC ruling against affirmative confirmations, some public colleges reconsidered their use of legacy preferences. The University of California, the University of Georgia, and Texas A&M University eliminated legacy admissions shortly after the Supreme Court’s ruling against race-based admissions policies. This move reflects a broader shift in admissions practices as institutions seek to comply with the new legal standards while promoting diversity. However, Colorado outlawed this practice way back in 2021 followed by Virginia in 2022.
The Future of Legacy Admissions in the US
As the legal framework governing affirmative action changes, the question remains whether legacy preferences, a relic of elitism, will continue to survive in an increasingly meritocratic society. Institutions that hold on to these policies may find themselves at odds with a growing demand for equity and fairness in college admissions.
