Yale, Princeton sees drop in Asian American students after SCOTUS affirmative action ruling

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Yale and Princeton universities’ Class of 2028, the first admitted after the Supreme Court’s decision ending affirmative action in June 2023, saw a decrease in Asian American enrollment compared to the previous year.

The numbers: According to admissions office data, Asian American students at Yale dropped by 6% to compose 24% of the Class of 2028, while those at Princeton dropped by 2.2% to make up 23.8%. Meanwhile, the share of Black students remained steady, accounting for 14% at Yale and 9% at Princeton. The share of white students in Yale’s first-year class increased from 42% to 46%, while Hispanic or Latino students reached a historic high at 19%. At Princeton, the share of Hispanic or Latino students fell slightly to 9% from 10%.
Process updates: In response to the SCOTUS ruling, both universities focused on recruiting students from more diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Along with new admissions training, Yale and Princeton responded to the affirmative action ban by revising their supplemental essay prompts to encourage reflections on personal experiences. The decline in Asian admissions at these universities contrasts with those of other institutions’ like MIT and Amherst, which reported an increase in Asian American students and declines in Black and Latino enrollment for their incoming classes.