Harvard Study Found Asian-American Admissions Bias, Suit Claims

  • Lawyers say they have discovered ‘incontrovertible’ evidence
  • University says case based on ‘incomplete, preliminary’ data

Photographer: Michael Fein/Bloomberg

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Harvard University’s own researchers found statistical evidence that its undergraduate application process discriminated against Asian-American applicants, yet its admissions officials ignored the results and took no action, a group suing for bias claimed.

In 2013, the Harvard Office of Institutional Research said that Asian-Americans should comprise 43.4 percent of the admitted class if they were judged purely on their academic merit, the organization, Students for Fair Admissions, said in a federal court filing Friday.