Minority applicants face bigger problem than GPA

There is a problem with minority representation at UCLA.
However, an increased GPA requirement is simply a non-issue. In
response to Jenna Kyle’s submission, “Tougher standards
stifle diversity” (Sept. 26), I’d like to say that her
argument, although well-intentioned, is moot.

First of all, who gets into UCLA with a 2.8 GPA? Unless you are
a gifted athlete on an athletic scholarship, most of the current
and former student population at UCLA had to earn at least a 3.4
GPA and a very high SAT score just to be considered for admission.
To argue that minority candidates need lower standards is frankly
insulting.

UCLA is one of the most competitive public universities in the
nation. The students capable of being admitted into UCLA are the
same students who get into elite private universities such as
Stanford, Harvard, Columbia, Yale and New York University. Since
UCLA draws from the same minority candidate pool as these elite
schools do, these minority candidates have their choice of colleges
and universities; they also have more than adequate financial aid
and scholarships available to them. Although they are a small
population, they do represent a rising trend as colleges want to
maximize their diversity as a means to an end, be it social,
political or economic.

The real issue is how to increase the total eligible pool of
college-bound minority candidates. Many research studies have shown
that high schools with a greater than 50 percent concentration of
black and Latino students are under-performing, if not failing
outright. Simply put, such high schools are not preparing students
to compete and qualify for enrollment at UCLA. Regardless of GPA
requirements, the real issue begins well before a minority
applicant even considers enrolling at UCLA.

Magdaleno graduated in 2003 with a degree in political
science.