Admissions decisions should be based on individual merit alone. That simple slogan, while nice in theory, would be quite messy to implement in practice. Besides eliminating Dartmouth's affirmative action programs, the Admissions Office would also have to stop giving preferential treatment to legacies.
During my time in Hanover, I have wavered on the issue of whether legacies should be given special consideration in the admissions process. In many conversations with friends, I have been persuaded by arguments on both sides of the question.
Strong family ties to the College, no doubt, yield many benefits to Dartmouth. In the abstract, the legacy admissions policy probably contributes to the unique spirit of the Dartmouth community. Dartmouth, to many, is a shared experience that brings together fathers and sons or fathers and daughters. These ties, however, not only bind families together but also keep families closer to the College. More legacy admissions means more alumni involvement and attention to Dartmouth.
In the concrete, the legacy admissions policy no doubt also increases alumni contributions to Dartmouth. An alumnus will be likely to give more money to the College if he believes there is a significant chance that his son or daughter will be matriculating in the future.
Many conservatives are content to recite the preceding arguments for the legacy admissions policy and pronounce the case closed. Unfortunately, these individuals leave themselves open to the charge of gross hypocrisy.
The standard argument against affirmative action programs is that individuals should be judged on merit alone. Candidates should neither be rewarded nor punished for characteristics they cannot control, such as the color of their skin or their ethnic background. Students should be admitted to the College solely because of their unique talents, accomplishments and character.
On the whole, I find this argument to be quite persuasive. The United States should be as much of a meritocracy as possible, and affirmative action definitely runs contrary to that goal.
It is equally clear, however, that the legacy admissions policy is also an anti-meritocratic method of arriving at admissions decisions. A candidate has no control over whether or not his relatives went to Dartmouth. From a principled point of view, it is just as fundamentally unfair to penalize a candidate because he has white skin as it is to penalize a candidate because none of his relatives have earned a Dartmouth degree.
While the legacy admissions policy provides Dartmouth with the tangible benefits mentioned above, affirmative action also makes positive contributions to the Dartmouth community. A more diverse student body enhances the educational experience both inside and outside of the classroom.
The question that we need to ask ourselves regarding both affirmative action and the legacy admission policy is the following: do the benefits the policy provides to the College justify the violation of the meritocratic principle?
In my judgement, the answer is no in both cases. A meritocracy is not just an abstract concept. When implemented in practice, it enriches a community far more than affirmative action programs or a legacy admissions policy ever could.
During my four years at Dartmouth, I have found that the most dynamic and accomplished students at the College tend to have similar backgrounds in one respect. Most are the first in their family to attend an Ivy League school.
These students do not come to Dartmouth because it has been expected of them since childhood. And they usually come from hometowns where it is out of the ordinary for a student at the local high school to be admitted to an Ivy League institution.
It should not come as a surprise that those students who arrive at Dartmouth because of extraordinary motivation and drive will be more likely to contribute to the College once they are here.
Eliminating the legacy admission policy would not destroy the Dartmouth family. Dartmouth graduates, after all, are capable of having children talented enough to be admitted to the College on a level playing field.
Ending special consideration of legacies is the right thing to do both in principle and in practice. By judging candidates on the basis of merit alone, we will not only come closer to achieving the American ideal but also improve the quality of life at Dartmouth at the same time.
