Michigan State University Extension
Diversity and Pluralism - 20293025
12/95/
ERIC TITLE NUMBER: ED202378 AUTHOR: Traynham, James G.
TITLE: The Bakke Decision and Graduate School Admissions:
What Is Equitable?
YEAR PUBLISHED: 1978
NOTE: 7 p.; Paper presented at a Seminar for State Leaders
in Postsecondary Education (New Orleans, LA, October 1978).
ABSTRACT: The question of how graduate schools can include
race as an admission criteria and give equitable treatment
in admissions decisions is addressed by considering some
aspects of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores and
the use and misuse of test scores in admissions procedures.
The GRE is used in admissions procedures to prove an across
the-board measure of academic potential among all the
applicants. If the GRE score plays a significant role in
the admissions decision, equitable treatment requires that
all applicants with equal academic potential have equal
chances to be admitted. Although the Graduate Record
Examination Board has cautioned against the use of any set
score as a cut-off for a favorable admissions decision,
some graduate schools and some departments use a cut-off
number. Since performance on the GRE varies widely with the
field of study, it is suggested that a field-conscious
aspect to admissions decisions might be desirable. It is
noted that GRE scores For graduate students at Louisiana
State University also vary with race. It is suggested that
in order to have applicants fall within the same range of
predicted academic potential, different scores would have
to be used for different races, just as it would be
necessary to use different scores for different fields. It
is suggested that admissions procedures need to be
reevaluated to determine whether equal treatment
(uniformity in application of standards) has actually led
to equitable treatment of applicants. (SW)
KEY DESCRIPTORS: Educational-Opportunities;
Equal-Education;
Graduate-Study; Higher-Education; Minority-Groups;
Predictive-Measurement; Scores-; Tests-
KEY DESCRIPTORS: *Admission-Criteria; *Affirmative-Action;
*College-Admission; *College-Entrance-Examinations; *Race-
This is an ERIC database document. ERIC is the National
Education Information Network for providing ready access
to the literature of education -descriptions of exemplary
programs, research and development efforts, and related
information that can be used in developing more effective
educational programs. The ERIC database is currently
available on CD-ROM in the main library (ground floor of
the west wing) at Michigan State University. To locate
ERIC documents in the library identify the first line of
each record (i.e., the field ERIC TITLE NUMBER). ED
following ERIC TITLE NUMBER indicates an ERIC document,
an unpublished research study. Most of these items are
available in the Microforms library, located on the 3rd
floor of the west wing. All you need is the six digit ED
number. If EJ follows ERIC TITLE NUMBER the item is a
journal article. The complete journal name is listed after
the code JOURNAL.
This information is for educational purposes only. References
to commercial products or trade names does not imply
endorsement by MSU Extension or bias against those not
mentioned. This information becomes public property upon
publication and may be printed verbatim with credit to MSU
Extension. Reprinting cannot be used to endorse or advertise
a commercial product or company.
This file was generated from data base DP on 06/25/02.
Data base DP was last revised on 12/95/ .
For more information about this data base or its contents please contact
cook@msue.msu.edu . Please read our
disclaimer for important
information about using our site.