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GOLDSEA |
ASIAMS.NET |
ASIAN AMERICAN ISSUES
ARE IVY DEGREES WORTH THE SACRIFICES
ending their kids to ivy league universities is the dream of every Asian American parent. Or so it seems. And there is no shortage of young AA willing to oblige. As of 2000, Asian Americans made up 12-19% of the undergrad enrollments of the top-20 ivy league universities.
No one questions the prestige associated with ivy degrees. In fact, sneer critics, that's the only thing bought with the extra money. And even that, they add, is wearing thin in a nation in which he cultural center of gravity has shifted to California.
It's true that investments in high ivy tuitions often don't show up in career earnings when compared with graduates of public universities of comparable student body profiles. But the criticisms run deeper than return on investment. Some Asian Americans who have attended ivy league colleges have come away regretting their decisions for other reasons.
Foremost is the sense that the ivies are structured for the benefit of legatees, the progeny of blueblooded alumni. Comprising upwards of 40% of some ivies, the legatees are often exempted from stringent admissions standards. The result is that AA students with excellent credentials are the workhorses preserving the institutions' high academic reputations, thereby giving a free ride to undeserving legatees.
Another common complaint is that the deck is stacked socially against Asian males in a system designed to preserve the princely status quo of the scions of WASP families. A disproportionate number of attractive AA females are admitted by the ivies, some have observed, while far fewer attractive AA males are admitted. This subtle bias, suspect critics, is implemented in the screening interviews used by most ivies.
Then there's the Eurocentric worldview imposed by the courses. Not to mention the lousy weather, bland food and having to put up with locals hostile toward Asians. Contrast all this against the majority-ease lifestyles enjoyed by the AA in, say, the UC campuses.
The bragging rights an ivy education affords parents, conclude critics, are far outweighed by the psychic and emotional sacrifices exacted from their kids.
Does an ivy education provide rewards commensurate with the sacrifices? Or is it a trap for AA with overzealous parents with old-world views?
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WHAT YOU SAY
[This page is closed to new input. --Ed.]
(Updated
Tuesday, Apr 1, 2008, 06:01:17 PM)
Becoming a department head or manager takes some political astuteness. When did asians start having a significant prescence in hard science fields in the U.S.? Probably only within this last generation. I would guess within a generation or two, asians will start occupying a significant portion of the top positions in the sciences. It takes a while to break in and become part of the system if it is currently (mildly) geared towards your advancement because of your race and culture. The same thing happens with graduates of elite schools. Naturally, many people in top positions feel more affinity with people who graduated from the same school. If you didn't graduate from an elite school, then you have to work harder for advancement.
KM,24
Friday, December 21, 2001 at 23:59:02 (PST)
AAM:
Intermarriage has NOTHING to do with intelligence. On behalf of mixed-race kids everywhere, I'll kindly ask you to stop perpetuating ridiculous myths. The homogeneity which destroys corporations and collapses economies is homogeneity of opinion, education, and experience, as well as a blind tendency to follow commands from the top, not homogeneity of race. To connect the fact that Enron has a monoracial board of directors just like many zaibatsu/chaebol to economic collapse is spurious at best and racist at worst.
T.H. Lien
Friday, December 21, 2001 at 21:09:57 (PST)
Asian American Male,
I have seen lots of people here spewing forth stuff that they shouldn't be talking about because they have no clue what they are talking about. But your comments about monolithic/monoethnic Asian countries just shows your limited knowledge about Asia; i.e. probably based on Korea and Japan.
In other countries such as Burma, China, Vietnam, there are numerous ethnic groups which make up the citizens of those countries. And yes these ethnic minorities DO INTERMARRY; although they also marry within their ethnic groups.
One should be careful when making broad sweeping generalizations about Asians in Asia since the level of knowledge most Americans and Westerners have about Asia and things Asian is rather low. It would help if people would state specifics rather than use the general term Asia, Asian, etc.,
Another thing I find disturbing is your implication that intermarriage has something to do with scientific/technological success/innovation. I know this is one of the things taught in junior high school biology class; that inbreeding gives rise to lower-IQ kids. However to extrapolate from that and apply it to American scientific prowess is quite foolhardy. Asians are genetically diverse in all Asian countries. Their genetic diversity is actually greater than the genetic diversity between Frenchmen and German; let's not confuse genetic diversity with diverse political entities. Also the fact of the matter is, unless one is inbred for hundreds of generations, mental effort and diligence as well as the ability to examine things outside the "box" is what contributes to scientific prowess. Therefore the whole world has hope since it is not genetics that makes America great but knowledge which can be learned by anyone whether one is black, white, yellow or even green.
be real
Friday, December 21, 2001 at 14:51:07 (PST)
"So why doesn't that translate to more tenure prof and department heads being asian? If asian are over-represented in the all USA University systems. This arguement would extend into all aspect research and teaching."
It would be great if the people who want to retain affirmitive action make this argument instead of allowing the anti-affirmitive action whites (who happen to be mostly full blooded white women who also benefitted from these programs) to use the "Asians" to railroad other minorities. Instead, NAACP always uses the fairness argument.
"Buddist Temple and education in China. Is like The Roman Catholic Church to European gov't in the Middle Age."
I am of Christian faith and go to church every sunday. But the history of the Roman Catholic church is nothing to brag about...they questioned Galileo's theory of earth rotating around the sun and introduced inquisition. Along with the European pagans they contributed to the Dark Ages. It was the Moors who held aloft the torch of civilization in Europe...but Alas!! history has come full circle. The descendants of the moors want to return to the dark ages (Taliban) and the Europeans have adopted modern ways!!
Asian American Male
Friday, December 21, 2001 at 13:10:32 (PST)
DV8 Ragazza,
A majority of people on this site are not demonizing the USA in preference for Asian Culture in the USA.
Most of us also understand that the immigrant issue is universial in the USA. But we also understand that there are slight differences between different immigrant groups. Granted I frowned on various ethnic/women studies in college, because I thought it detracted from goal of higher learning in the pure sense and they should have been sub-departments of political science. However, each ethniticity of immigrants are slightly different for whatever political or actual reasons.
The other point is that the USA is on a PC bent. We as a society, have for whatever reasons, decided to be the upholder of the long forgotten utopian ideals (and shoving it down the throat of the world). Grant in practice we are far from that ideal. But we are still trying to reach that ideal. As long as our entire society (in legal and political sense) is based on polar conflict to reach resolution. Ethnic groups will be forever bitching and vilifing each other for the greater good.
Asian American Male,
"It may equal white to a majority of folks in Asia, but in reality it is not white"
When I was going to highschool on the subway about 15 years ago, I read an article in the NY Times. The NYC was composed of 51% minority. Well does that make us the majority?
Not to debate semantics but no matter what the reality of the numbers, we will still be viewed as minorities for a long time to come.
Also smart and advance does not equal perfect. I went to a highschool with consistent Westinghouse fellows every year and considered one of gems in the NYC public school system. Smart only means it will take less effort on the individual part to get something done. Doesn't mean they will get the right thing done.
I don't know what part of Asia you've been to but I've seen many Asian-Asian marriages and children. Japan-Chinese, Chinese-Korean, Tai-Vietnamese, Korean-Japanese, Chinese-Japanese. You just might not have noticed them or bother to ask them, because you can't really notice the difference. Culturally it is pretty easy to adapt to various asian culture, so there are not much of an identity issue. Of course a white happa sticks out in Asia like a sore thumb. So do any black/white people. Out marriage are still relative rare in Asia in general. Beside your judgments are based on immigration laws, not on what is really going on.
AC dropout
Friday, December 21, 2001 at 10:23:08 (PST)
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