Majority of college students do not support legacy admissions: survey

A vast majority of college students say they believe legacy admissions into universities are unfair, according to a new survey from Generation Lab. 

The poll found 39 percent of young people say it is “definitely not” fair for colleges to consider if a person’s family attended the same school in the admissions process, while 36 percent it is “probably not” fair. Only 6 percent believe it is “definitely” fair while 19 percent say it “probably” is.

The results come after the Supreme Court ruled last month to restrict the use of affirmative action in college admissions. 

Universities are no longer allowed to consider someone’s race when contemplating their acceptance to the school, although students are still allowed to mention their race, how it has affected them and the struggles they have overcome in their essays. 

Fifty-two percent of students said in the poll that race and ethnicity should not be part of the admissions process, while 48 percent said it should. 

The recent ruling has renewed a target on legacy admissions, commonly used at Ivy League schools, where a student may get in due to someone in their family previously going to the school or being a wealthy donor. 

Advocates point out that legacy admissions tend to benefit people who are white, rich or both. 

“I think the question is how do you continue to create a culture where education is the goal for every single part of our community? One of the things that Harvard could do to make that even better is to eliminate any legacy programs where they have preferential treatment for legacy kids, not allow for the professors — their kids to come to Harvard as well,” Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who is running for president, said after the high court ruling.

The poll surveyed 783 college students and recent graduates between July 12 and July 17. Its unweighted margin of error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.