Most of you probably recall the stressful time of filling out college applications. How would you feel if on that application you were asked if you were gay, straight, lesbian or transgendered? Well, Elmhurst College in Elmhurst, Illinois became the first college to ask that question. You can actually see the question featured on their application on their website: http://media.elmhurst.edu/documents/Application_2011.pdf (p. 3). Having this question on their application has also caused a lot of controversy. According to admissions at Elmhurst College, this question was put on the application in order to increase diversity at their school. Gary Rold, dean of admissions, said the college will get a better handle on what LGBT students want from their college experience. He said students' interests affect greatly what the college offers, including majors and extracurricular activities. We all know how competitive schools are to get into- who has the highest GPA, who scored high on the SAT’s, who has the most extracurricular activities? Is sexual orientation just one more thing that high school students have to weigh in their chances of getting into college? Other colleges across the country are going to wait to see if Elmhurst is getting positive feedback for their question about sexual orientation. In time, this very well could be a customary question on all college applications. I want to know what you think, and please respond to a few of these questions and/or raise an argument of you own.
1. Do you think this is a fair question to ask?
2. The question, as of now, is optional. Would you feel comfortable giving your honest answer?
3. Would you consider lying about your sexual preference to get into the school of your choice?
Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/sports/College+first+about+sexual+orientation+admission+application/5323170/story.html?id=5323170#ixzz1bMIZ3u3C
I think it is a fair question to ask on scholarships because I know you can get scholarships due to your sexual preference. On the other hand, with college applications, I feel as though the question should stay optional because if one does not feel comfortable or has not come to terms with their decision to be bi, lesbian, gay, ect, they should not have to feel obligated to have to put it down on paper. Even though the school wants to create diversity, they honestly cannot do that because some people do not know yet. It is not like this can be considered a part of diversity, like being black, Hispanic, or Asian; because it is not clear, and it is not like people should in a way be called out because of their sexual preference. Some people are not comfortable with talking about it, and if it were to effect one getting into their school of choice, clearly it is not the right school. You should be able to go to a school that accepts you no matter what sexual preference, so then you do not feel singled out. Especially since there are still people out there who are homophobic and will judge others due to their sexual preference, and it could possibly add a bigger stress of being in college. I feel as though I college should not have to ask you the question about sexual preference because it is your business, whether the question is optional or not.
ReplyDeleteI suppose it is a fair question to ask if it could get you a scholarship or something, but only if you're being truthful. Many people consider lying on applications if it benefits them, and for that reason, I think it can also be unfair to include this in the application. I understand that colleges want to be more diverse, but they would be diverse regardless if the question was on the application, they would just have no record of it, really. Maybe instead of having the question on the application, the school could offer a Gay Straight Alliance club to the students. There would be somewhere for the students to connect and they would know they were being diverse. I would never consider lying on the application because then you're acceptance/rejection into the school could be false based on that one question; it shouldn't be but it very well could be.
ReplyDeleteI do not think this question is fair. It seems like a way for colleges to group kids into another category. I don't think being gay, straight, lesbian, or transgendered has anything to do with getting into college. This question should not be taken into consideration by colleges because it should not matter if you are or aren't your still going to be the same person.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to answer this question on an application I would feel comfortable giving my honest answer.
I would not consider lying about my sexual preference to get into the school of my choice because if that's what it takes for me to get in there then I don't want to go there. I would feel like I was being judged. I don't feel a person should get "special treatment" because they are gay, lesbian, or straight we are all equal and deserve the same chance of getting in as everyone else.
I do not think that is at all a fair question to be asking on a college application. This question adds to an increasing number of questions that colleges ask on applications so as to increase their diversity to make their campuses appear to be more accepting of minorities or more accepting of people with different sexual orientations. The problem with such questions like the GLBT one or the race one with alignment to minorities gives those people special preference when being admitted to the university. I especially dislike such a question, because it more than likely increases a GLBT person’s chances of being admitted to a university, and it is too easy to lie about one’s orientation. Although people still lie about their race, or stretch the truth, there is at least more of chance of verifying the truth, whereas with orientation there is no chance of confirming the truth. Furthermore, a prospective student’s gender, orientation and/or race should not be weighed when an Admission’s Board and a college or university makes the decision about who to accept and who to decline. I’m curious about what the college’s real motive is behind asking such questions? Is it to increase diversity or limit diversity? With that being said, I would not feel comfortable giving my answer to that question because I am uncertain about the reason or necessity behind posing such questions. Moreover, the question should remain optional (as should the race question) because it places students in specific categories and furthers any profiling that might have existed in the first place. I would not be comfortable lying about my sexual preference on a college application, because it would feel wrong knowing I got into a school simply because of something I fabricated.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a fair question to be asked, as long as it is optional, but I do not think it is needed. Some students aren't comfortable with their sexuality at this point in their life, and some aren't sure what their sexuality is either, so leaving it optional gives them a choice. Do colleges really need to know what your sexual preference is? In their brochures for the school are they going to include that their population is 50% homosexual? I highly doubt it because it may be a turn-off for many teenagers applying. I would feel comfortable giving my honest answer on an application because I'm comfortable with who I am. I would not consider lying in order to get a scholarship or any other "treatments" because, like previously stated, if that's what it takes for me to go there, than it is not the school for me. Even though this question will show diversity, I do not think it is a "needed" question on an application.
ReplyDeleteSeeing that the question is an optional question on the application, i think that it is fair. If students don't feel comfortable answering the question, then they don't have to. If it were the other way around and the question was required, i don't think that asking this question would be fair. Students may feel like they are being judged by answering the question and they may not want to. Personally i would not have a problem with answering this question myself but i think others who are not as comfortable with their sexuality may not want to answer. If i was dead set on going to a certain school and the only way i could get in was lying about my sexual preference then i would consider doing it. Something like that does not really bother me a lot but i know it may bother others greatly.
ReplyDeleteJust like previous posts, I believe that the question is fair to ask if it is optional. If the question becomes required then it would be unfair to ask because some people might not be comfortable with expressing their sexuality. This question on the application does have upside from some. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, the question will identify students as eligible for an "enrichment" scholarship worth roughly one-third of their tuition would could make a financial difference if the student is willing to answer the question.For me, I would feel 100% comfortable answering the question but for others it may be hard. The question brings up a problem in which a person can lie in order to get more money off their tuition. Most likely, I would not lie about sexual preference to get into a school because I just would not feel right if took money away or an acceptation letter away from a person who did not lie about his sexual preference.
ReplyDeleteI feel as though this question is not a fair question and should not be asked on a college application. Questions asked on college applications generally are asked for the sole purpose of getting an individual into a college or university. Besides the general information like name, DOB, sex, etc, what significance would whether or not someone is GLBT have on their chances of getting into that college? I feel as though Elmhurst College gives these backup reasons as to why this question is being asked as a cover up for a deeper reason. Admissions could be saying that they want diversity within the college, and could actually want the very opposite, limiting the number of GLBT they accept into the school. Once a student is accepted into the college, it is from that point on where i believe a student can decide as to whether or not they want to share their sexuality or participate in any of these groups. Also, if the question is optional on the application, that leaves students in an awkward spot. Because if a student is straight, what problem would it be to admit it? If a student does not want to answer the question, I feel as though admissions would generally throw that student in the GLBT category.
ReplyDeleteThis question is not fair to be asked on a college application. It puts both straight and GLBT students at a disadvantage. For GLBT students, they may feel awkward coming out in such a public manner, and they may also feel that they will be discriminated against once they get to school, or put with other GLBTs. On the other hand, if Elmhurst wants to increase diversity,and they are looking at two different applications (one straight and one GLBT), they may be more likely to accept the GLBT student. I do not believe it is fair to accept someone over someone else due to sexual orientation. To me, it has nothing to do with whether or not you should be accepted into a college. This should not be a factor when applying to colleges, no matter which sexual orientation you are.
ReplyDeleteThe question of sexuality on a college application is one of those things that evokes a strong response. This strong response can either be very positive or very negative. The fact that someone might get into college because of their gender would probably be the most negative criticism of this question. The fact that the community might be more friendly to gay, lesbian or transgendered people would create the most support for the question.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was looking at colleges I fortunately did not have worry about getting judged on campus for my ethnicity or my sexual preference. However many people who do not fit the straight white cooky cutter model first look at whether or not the college environment would be accepting, or even safe. So when this question is asked with the reasoning being to show support to gay, transgendered, or bisexual people I do not see a reason against it. The idea that this question is forcing people to come out in a public place makes no sense because the question is optional. I actually really enjoy how their is such a stark contrast between the college application and the "don't ask don't tell" doctrine previously used by the army.
The issue of an unfair advantage to LGBT community in getting accepted to college could be argued without considering a few factors. Through most of their life the LGBT community has dealt with being different in a sea of "normal" people. Imagine being the only straight person in a completely gay community. There are hurtles to jump through and a lot of pressure to just give up. Maybe a small advantage in a critical part of life is really not that unfair. Lastly their probably would be some people that would lie about their sexuality in hopes of getting in to college. What these people gain in a chance to get in to college they lose in morality. I definitely do not think that a few people trying to cheat the system is a basis to scrap the question.