Virginia Tech will no longer consider legacy status in its admissions process or accept early decision applicants, the university announced last week.
The changes, which will take effect during the upcoming 2023-2024 academic year, come on the heels of the Supreme Court’s strike-down of affirmative action in June, prohibiting schools from looking at an applicant’s race when considering their admission.
“Every year, we examine our admissions and enrollment practices to ensure that we continue to strive for a best practice and innovative approach to providing access to a Virginia Tech education to all qualified applicants,” said Luisa Havens-Gerardo, vice provost for enrollment management, in a news release. “The discontinuation of the early decision plan and the use of legacy as a factor in admissions will allow us to improve the admissions process to benefit all students.”
Juan Espinoza, associate vice provost for enrollment management, said in the news release that university officials have “placed less and less emphasis on legacy in recent years, to the point that it’s not factoring into admissions decisions in any significant way.”
However, Espinoza added that legacy students have still wound up making up a significant portion of the school’s population: Although only about 12% of applicants are legacies, they make up over 20% of the incoming class.
“This demonstrates that legacy students are applying with all the academic and extracurricular preparation that they need to compete for admission,” said Espinoza.
Additionally, the university will no longer offer an early decision application deadline; instead, its early action application due date will move up to Nov. 15. The regular decision deadline of Jan. 15 will remain.
Early decision agreements are binding, meaning that if a student’s early decision application to a university is accepted, they must attend that university — regardless of what financial aid options are offered to them. Meanwhile, early action decisions are non-binding; students do not have to commit to the school early, but receive an answer about their admissions status sooner.
“By eliminating early decision, we are simplifying our application process and also leveling the playing field for all students, regardless of their household income,” said Espinoza.
According to the news release, about 20% of students in the school’s incoming class were selected through early decision.
Virginia Tech joins other universities that are updating their admissions processes to promote diversity in the wake of the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling. For example, Wesleyan University in Connecticut did away with legacy admissions last month.
“We know that diverse environments are the most powerful learning environments,” said Menah Pratt, vice president for diversity and strategic affairs, in the news release. “Our commitment to an inclusive university community prepares our graduates to engage with the world and its most pressing problems.”
Separately, on Tuesday, the University of Virginia said admissions officers won’t see an applicants race or ethnicity in a checkbox on applications. Prospective students, the university said, will have the chance to write an essay to explain their backgrounds and experiences.
After the court announced its decision on June 29, other D.C. region universities made statements expressing a similar interest in finding new ways to include underrepresented populations in their student bodies.
Howard University released a statement the day of the ruling, saying that the school will “continue to partner with those institutions and organizations that understand the critical role affirmative action has played in ensuring equitable access to education for students of color.”
Bowie State University called the decision one “contrary to 45 years of precedent upholding the constitutionality of race-conscious admissions,” promising to “continue to work to make our campus a beacon of opportunity.”
American University President Sylvia Burwell wrote in a letter to the community that the school is “reviewing the court’s decision and evaluating its potential impact,” and will continue to update the public as their research goes on.
