Less Than One-Third of Students Think Legacy Admissions Should Be Allowed: Survey

This report is part of BestColleges’ 2023 College Choice and Admissions Survey.

Legacy admissions — giving a student preferential consideration for admission when their family attended the same college and/or has historically supported that school financially — is sometimes accused of being a kind of affirmative action for the rich.

BestColleges surveyed over 1,000 prospective and current undergraduate and graduate students to gauge their opinions on legacy admissions practices and how they compare to affirmative action.

Less than one-third of students (32%) say legacy admissions should be allowed. Forty-two percent disagree that legacy admissions should be allowed – in other words, they don’t think colleges should admit students based on family legacy. The remaining students (28%) are neutral.

Additionally, 3 in 10 students (30%) say legacy admissions practices are fair, while 42% of students disagree that legacy admissions are fair, and 28% remain neutral.

With the U.S. Supreme Court’s strike down of affirmative action earlier this year, the fairness of legacy admissions has also come into question.

In July 2023, a group of nonprofit organizations filed a federal civil rights complaint against Harvard for what was described as a discriminatory practice of giving preferential treatment to applicants with familial ties to wealthy donors and alumni.

Several elite colleges have ended legacy admissions practices in recent years, including Johns Hopkins, which ended the practice in 2014, and Amherst College — one of the top-ranked liberal arts schools — which announced its end of legacy admissions practices in 2021.

In March 2022, students and lawmakers introduced the “Fair College Admissions Act” which would prohibit legacy admissions policies at colleges and universities in New York. The bill is currently under review by the Senate.

Overall, 46% of students say legacy admissions practices may have hurt their chances of getting into the college of their choice. Less than one-quarter of students (24%) disagree, and 30% are neutral.

Less than one-third of students (32%) say that legacy admissions helped their chances of getting into the college of their choice. Forty-four percent of students disagree, and 24% are neutral.

First-generation students are more likely than non-first-generation students to say legacy admissions practices may have hurt their chances of getting into the college of their choice (52% vs. 38%).

However, first-generation students are also more likely than non-first-generation students to say legacy admissions practices are fair (37% vs. 21%) and should be allowed (38% vs. 26%).

According to our 2023 College Choice and Admission Survey, legacy status is second only to race/ethnicity among factors students say colleges should consider least when accepting an applicant.

Nearly half of students say race/ethnicity (49%) should be one of the least important factors for institutions considering an applicant, and 43% of students say legacy status should be one of the least important factors in admissions.

However, when asked about both practices — race-conscious and legacy admissions — students are more likely to say race-based affirmative action is fair compared to legacy admissions (40% vs. 30%).

Nearly one-third of students (32%) also say legacy admissions should be allowed versus 44% who say affirmative action should be allowed.

Students’ opinions about whether either practice should be allowed vary by gender, race, and sexuality.

Men and millennials are more likely to say both affirmative action and legacy admissions should be allowed, compared to women and Gen Z students. About half of men (52%) and 37% of women agree that affirmative action should be allowed. Forty-three percent of men and 23% of women agree that legacy admissions should be allowed.

Additionally, 51% of millennials vs. 26% of Gen Z agree that affirmative action should be allowed. More than 2 in 5 millennials (41%) and 28% of Gen Z say legacy admissions should be allowed.

Across racial and ethnic groups, students are more likely to say race-based admissions should be allowed than legacy admissions.

Black students are most likely out of all racial/ethnic groups to support both practices, with 50% saying race-based admissions should be allowed and 41% saying legacy admissions should be allowed.

Students of some other races — including Asian, Asian American, or Asian Indian; Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; Middle Eastern or Northern African; Native American, American Indian, or Alaska Native; and those who selected identity/identities not listed — were least likely to say either race-based or legacy admissions should be allowed.

Collectively, just 23% of students of these races said legacy admissions should be allowed. Less than one-third (32%) were in favor of allowing affirmative action.

In general, the same student groups that say legacy admissions should be allowed are more inclined to agree that the practice is fair.

Forty-two percent of men, 40% of millennials, and 39% of Black students say legacy admissions are fair. In comparison, just 20% of women, 26% of Gen Z, and 20% of students of other races — including Asian, Pacific Islander, Middle Eastern, and Native American or Alaska Native — view legacy admissions as fair.

This survey was conducted from Sept. 29-Oct. 5, 2023, and was fielded by Pure Spectrum. Survey participants included 1,000 respondents nationwide who were currently enrolled in an on-campus, online, or hybrid undergraduate or graduate degree program. Respondents were 17-49 years of age, with the majority (95%) ages 18-38, and currently pursuing an associate, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, or professional degree. The respondents for the survey were screened by various quality checks, including systems like Relevant ID, and responses were manually reviewed to ensure consistency and accuracy.