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Nationally there is clear evidence that typical admissions criteria and practices can maintain racial/ethnic inequalities in graduate education [i].

We are working with the country’s leading experts on graduate holistic admissions, Drs Julie Posselt and Casey Miller to

  • Have a full discussion of the department’s goals for graduate education and aspirations to develop skilled, broad graduate alumni.
  • Use that analysis to rethink their admissions criteria and processes, with a focus on equity-based holistic review.
  • Develop an evaluation rubric for each department that is based on their stated goals.

Longer term projects include revising the questions we ask letter writers to include how the applicant has demonstrated resilience and initiative (two likely indicators of success in graduate studies.)

[i] J. Posselt. Inside graduate admissions: Merit, diversity, and faculty gatekeeping. Harvard University Press, 2016.

J.D. Kent and M.T. McCarthy, Holistic Review in Graduate Admissions: A Report from the Council of Graduate Schools. Washington, DC: Council of Graduate Schools, 2016.