Brown, UNC, Amherst sees more Asian American students after SCOTUS affirmative action decision

Following the Supreme Court’s June 2023 ruling against affirmative action, three more institutions — Brown University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and Amherst College — saw increases in Asian student enrollment. MIT previously reported a similar trend, while universities like Yale, Princeton, Duke, Tufts and the University of Virginia found the reverse.

By how much: At Brown, Asian students now make up 33% of the incoming class, up from 29% the previous year. UNC noted a slight increase from 24.8% to 25.8%, while Amherst’s rose from 18% to 20%. Meanwhile, Black and Hispanic enrollees both fell at Brown, with the university specifically noting a 27% to 18% decline in “groups historically underrepresented in higher education.” Black enrollment also decreased from 10.5% to 7.8% at UNC and 11% to 3% at Amherst, while Hispanic enrollment fell from 10.8% to 10.1% at UNC and 12% to 8% at Amherst.
The big picture: Overall, the SCOTUS ruling has led to varying outcomes across institutions, with some schools successfully mitigating the impact through targeted recruitment and financial aid. Others, particularly those with national and international scopes, have struggled to maintain a diverse student body without race-conscious admissions policies. The full impact of the ruling remains to be seen as more schools release their admissions data.

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