<p>So, has Espenshade, or anyone else, compared the SAT scores of Asian applicants intending to major in STEM with the SAT scores of white applicants intending to major in STEM? </p>
<p>I recall seeing that the engineers at some schools we looked at had much higher test scores than students in other majors. I didn’t see any information specific to math or science majors, but I think it’s reasonable to expect that math/physics/chemistry majors would have scores comparable to the engineers. They do have to complete some comparable coursework. </p>
<p>So is it that the Asians “need” higher SAT scores? Or could it be that successful STEM applicants achieve higher test scores and that Asians are over-represented among STEM applicants?</p>
<p>These tests are measuring a specific set of academic skills. They are not measuring all skills pertinent to academic success in college. Kids whose talents and interests include math are going to do better in the math section. Kids with other interests are not necessarily going to be favored by these tests. On average, I expect they would score lower. Does Harvard care if their budding musicologist or art historian got a lower math score and a lower composite than their aspiring physicists? I would hope not. This suit seems to imply that they should care. </p>
<p>Looking at these subgroups is not irrelevant. You can’t even understand the issue without doing so.</p>
<p>Having attended and assisted with a wide variety of kid ECs and teams, I saw that in our region the Asian kids are participating at a far higher rate in the STEM activities. The difference was also evident when we sat in on STEM vs. non-STEM classes during college visits. </p>
<p>Regarding the legacy admissions, I didn’t find where Espenshade’s asked the question, do legacies have an admissions preference specifically at their parent’s alma mater? Instead he asked, are legacies more likely to be admitted to any of the schools examined? Did I miss something? I don’t see how this bears on the complaint that was made.</p>
<p>@kenzaburo "What would you expect is a kid came to you and said that she wants to major in philosophy and Sanskrit? (Which, by the way, I may encourage some of my kids to write in. " So you’re going to advise kids to lie? Wow.</p>