Should race be considered for enrollment into a University? Well per the Supremes Courts ruling in the Fisher vs The University of Texas case it should be considered. Even though the Supreme Court favored their decision for the University of Texas, I still wonder if race should be considered? In 1997 Texas enacted a law requiring the University to admit all graduating seniors that were in the top 10% of their class. This seems to be a fair law based on the assumption that a student who did well enough to finish in the top 10% should be deserving of admission. But does that law effectively create diversity in the admission process?

            Fisher was denied admission over minorities who scored lower on the entrance exams, so based on this she should have received admission before them. This is part of the claim Fisher made. The University upheld the state law concerning the top 10% but after some years they decided that they were not receiving the diversity they had hoped for. After a review UT decided to continue the 10% rule and with the remaining admissions they would consider race as a qualifying component. Fisher was not in the top 10% so she had to compete with the remaining population to gain admission.

            Affirmative action has played a key role in allowing minorities the opportunity to have the same standards as non-minorities. Affirmative action is why UT uses race as consideration for acceptance. As we all know history has shown us that minorities suffer from lower education rates compared to non-minorities. Based on this fact we may assume that without affirmative action, minorities would continue to be less educated and allowed less opportunities to attend universities like UT. The desire for UT to be a diverse university and allow minorities a chance for a higher education is very commendable. UT has stood by the 10% rule and believes top students deserve admittance for their hard work. But they also recognize that minorities may just need a chance to prove they have the same ability as the top 10%.

            There will always be disagreement on the decision made by the Supreme Court in Fisher vs The University of Texas and some would say that with different Justices the outcome would be different. The important thing is not to scrutinize the court’s decision, but rather see the advancement we have made as a country when it comes to diversity. I personally can’t tell you if race consideration is the fair way to go but I can say that I support the decision of the court and hope it will continue to help diversity.