As a new academic year begins, artificial intelligence (AI) is taking center stage in discussions surrounding college admissions. With its transformative potential, AI is poised to revolutionize the admission process, alleviating concerns about access, affordability, assessment, and anxiety. College applicants, families, and educators need not panic—AI could be the very tool to address these long-standing issues in higher education.
The Need for a Revolution in College Admission
College admissions have faced systemic challenges for years. These challenges, encapsulated in what many call the “4 A’s”—Access, Affordability, Assessment, and Anxiety—have persisted despite efforts to bring about change. Various organizations, such as Making Caring Common (MCC), a project by Harvard Graduate School of Education, and the Coalition for College, have worked to tackle these issues. Membership organizations like the Common App have set ambitious goals to close equity gaps in postsecondary opportunities, while the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) has introduced its Center for Reimagining College Access.
Amid this ongoing struggle for reform, AI emerges as a promising solution. With its ability to process vast amounts of data, analyze patterns, and provide real-time feedback, AI can help colleges address the increasingly transactional nature of admissions while leveling the playing field for applicants from diverse backgrounds.
How AI is Changing the College Admission Landscape
Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy, explores AI’s role in education in his book Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education. He argues that AI will change how students are assessed, making assessments more transparent, accessible, and fair. Khan envisions a future where AI engages students in diverse ways and evaluates their answers in real time, allowing for a richer, more accurate assessment of skills such as communication, creativity, and critical thinking.
By measuring skills that were once thought to be immeasurable, such as curiosity and creativity, AI could motivate the education system to focus more on developing the whole person, rather than just evaluating test scores and GPAs. This shift could provide a more holistic view of each applicant, enabling colleges to better understand a student’s potential.
AI and Holistic Admissions
Emily Pacheco, assistant director of admissions at Loyola University Chicago and an AI enthusiast, believes AI can support colleges in assessing applications by offering new ways to analyze a broader set of data points. These might include essays, recommendation letters, and extracurricular activities, in addition to traditional metrics like grades and test scores. According to Pacheco, AI can help identify unique skills and experiences that align with an institution’s values and mission, potentially highlighting applicants who might otherwise be overlooked.
However, Pacheco emphasizes that AI’s success in creating a more holistic admission process depends on careful design and unbiased data. Rather than replacing human judgment, AI should complement it, helping admission officers manage the increasing volume of applications and address inherent biases in the reading process. In doing so, AI has the potential to democratize access to higher education by leveling the playing field for students from underrepresented backgrounds.
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Addressing Concerns and Ensuring Equity
While AI’s transformative potential is undeniable, its integration into college admissions must be handled with care. For AI to be truly revolutionary, it must be designed with fairness and transparency in mind. This requires addressing concerns about algorithmic bias, ensuring that the data used to train AI systems is representative and unbiased.
Additionally, AI should not exacerbate existing inequalities but rather provide solutions that enhance access to higher education for all students, regardless of their background. With proper oversight and thoughtful implementation, AI can help break down barriers and create a more equitable system for college admissions.
A New Era for College Admissions
As AI continues to advance, it has the potential to reshape the college admission process, making it more transparent, accessible, and fair. By focusing on the holistic development of applicants and offering new ways to assess their potential, AI could help colleges and universities create a more equitable system that benefits students from all walks of life.
The revolution that AI promises in education and college admissions is only just beginning, but with careful implementation and a commitment to equity, it has the power to address the long-standing challenges of access, affordability, and assessment, and reduce anxiety for students and families. In this new era, AI could be the key to unlocking a brighter, more inclusive future for higher education.
