The Political Economy of College Admissions¤y

A±rmative action in college admissions creates diversity by replacing marginal majority applicants with marginal minority applicants. Majority citizens' preferences over the level of diversity as well as the means of achieving it depend on their competitive positions in admissions. In a simple model of college admissions, we show that higher-ability majority citizens prefer a more diverse student body and and are more likely to favor race-conscious admissions rules than lower-ability citizens. Our model explains, ̄rst, the recent trend in American colleges and universities of replacing race-conscious admissions policies with race-neutral ones that de-emphasize standardized-test scores and, second, why majority voters support banning a±rmative action even though it does not signi ̄cantly improve their admissions prospects.