Top Ten Percent Rule in Texas

Down with the Top Ten Percent

Many colleges try to have a racially diversified environment by using affirmative action. Some colleges used the point system which would give an edge to minorities over Caucasians. The supreme court of Texas prohibited colleges to use affirmative action. When affirmative action was prohibited, minority enrollments at colleges decrease. To racially diversify colleges, Legislature passed the top ten percent rule. The top ten percent rule states any high school student that is in the top ten percent of his or her class will be automatically admitted into any Texas public college. Although the rule did diversify colleges, primarily University of Texas at Austin, the rule was unfair to many students. The top ten percent rule should be abolished or altered to be more equal among students.

The top ten percent rule is unfair to very competitive schools. For example at Plano West Senior High School, eight students had a 4.0 grade point average but were not in the top ten percent. Students that had no extracurricular activities, low SAT scores, and a low grade point average were being accepted into a major Texas public college while a student at Plano West with a 4.0 grade point average was not. Other students that had many hours of community service, a very high SAT score, and a high GPA might have not been accepted into A&M University or University of Texas at Austin. High schools students who took the easiest courses at a low-performing school would end up with a high GPA. Students who go to high competitive schools have to take much harder courses to end up with a high grade point average. As stated in Top Ten Percent May Hurt Minorities, an article by Melissa Mixon, the ten percent rule is suppose to promote racial diversity in colleges but hurts minorities in integrated schools because "chances for minority students to make the top 10 percent cutoff are hurt" (Mixon). Colleges did become racially diversified because many poor schools are essentially segregated. As stated in Is the 'Top 10 Plan' Unfair, "For example, Torres High School is almost entirely Hispanic. So most of its top 10 percent are Hispanic" ("Is the top..."). Some families are moving to less competitive schools because their child would have a better chance graduating top ten percent. A student who was in the top quarter of a highly competitive school could be the valedictorian of a less competitive school. Schools that have a less competitive environment do not prepare their students for college.

College is tough for students whose school did not prepare for the five page long essay and rigorous work involved. Many low-income students that