During the first year of admissions since the ban of affirmative action, Boston College’s Class of 2028 experienced a slight dip in Black student enrollment and slight increases in Hispanic and Asian American student enrollment.
The percentage of Black students in the Class of 2028 fell to 6 percent this year, a dip from 7 percent in the Class of 2027, according to a BC News Release. The percentage of Hispanic students rose to 14.4 percent, up from 13 percent the year prior, and the percentage of Asian American students rose the most, from 14.6 percent last year to 16.2 percent this year.
“The University’s mixed enrollment results were consistent with many highly selective colleges and universities in the wake of the 2023 United States Supreme Court ruling that ended the consideration of race as a factor in college admissions decisions,” the release reads.
In the Boston area specifically, the Class of 2028 marked a dip in racial diversity. Nearly every minority racial group experienced a decline at Harvard University and Tufts University, with the percentage of Black students experiencing the sharpest drop at both.
At Harvard, the share of first-year students who identified as Black dropped from 18 percent to 14 percent.
Like BC, both of these universities obtained their data through self-reported racial identification by their students.
According to the release, BC attributes its “relative stability” in admitting a diverse group of students to its strong ties with community-based organizations and QuestBridge, which matches low-income, high-achieving students to top universities.
The University also turned a special focus to socioeconomic factors for this year’s admissions cycle, the release states.
“Boston College’s increased focus on socioeconomic factors in admission helped it to attract a class composed of 14 percent first-generation students, an increase of 23 percent from last year,” the release reads. “Its percentage of Pell-eligible students (individuals with the highest level of financial need) rose by 50 percent to an all-time high of 18.8 percent, reflecting the University’s continued commitment to meeting the full demonstrated need of all accepted students.”
BC’s Class of 2028 is its first admitted since the Supreme Court banned the use of affirmative action in college admissions. The University utilized affirmative action for decades, aiming to admit more women and minority students.
After the Supreme Court banned affirmative action in June 2023, University President Rev. William P. Leahy, S.J., released a statement condemning the ruling.
“Today’s Supreme Court ruling banning the inclusion of race as a factor in the college admission process is a frustrating departure from a decades-long judicial precedent,” Leahy wrote in the statement.
The University would continue, he wrote, on its mission to enroll talented and diverse students within the new parameter of the court.
The University’s admissions process this year focused on factors of diversity beyond racial demographics, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Grant Gosselin said in the release.
“Our office reviewed applications and made decisions in a race-blind environment while enhancing our focus on race-neutral factors that align with Boston College’s mission,” Gosselin said in the release. “Expanding our commitment to ensuring a wider range of socioeconomic representation among our student body was critical to our work.”
The Class of 2027 marked BC’s most diverse freshman class ever, comprised of 38 percent AHANA students and 11 percent first-generation students.
