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Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Might Be Added To Common College Admissions Application

08/13/10-by Bridgette P. LaVictoire
College has always been a time of learning, but it appears that it is now the colleges that are learning. Proposed changes to the Common Application, used by 415 colleges and universities in the United States, may add questions regarding sexual orientation and gender identity to its list. The application is created and run by a national non-profit.

“The Common Application is considering adding voluntary questions about applicants’ sexual orientation and gender identity. The application is used by hundreds of colleges and universities — including many of the most competitive.

“The current norm in higher education is not to ask such questions, even on a voluntary basis. But with more students coming out in high school, and with some colleges explicitly taking steps to recruit gay applicants, some admissions officers and some advocates for gay students want to encourage colleges to ask the questions. But the possible switch could be controversial. The Common Application has conducted a nonbinding survey of its members and — while not releasing results — has indicated that the membership is split. (The association’s board will decide the question.)”

The question would be voluntary, and might either be a drop down list including gay/lesbian, bisexual, straight/heterosexual, or another identity. Instead of the drop down list, what they might do is simply provide a blank space for the identity to be typed in by the student. This would allow the students to write out how they feel that they identify.

Gender identity questions may be more difficult since federal regulations require collection of information regarding legal gender identity, such as birth certificate identification of ‘male’ or ‘female.’ One possibility would be to include another box to allow for transgender to be listed (such as on some documents in Vermont)

“On the issue of gender identity, the Common Application is considering options that would explain why the male/female question must be asked consistent with federal reporting requirements, but which would then go on to tell applicants that if there is a word that better describes their identity beyond male or female, they are welcome to add that.”

Shane Windmeyer of Campus Pride stated:

Campus Pride Executive Director Shane Windmeyer was interviewed for the piece:

“It is 2010,” he said. “Colleges should take responsibility for their LGBT students at the front end of the admissions process. We have students from across the country who are already out when they apply, and this should just be part of the process. There is no reason these students should be invisible when it comes to applying for college.”

The Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals has been pushing for these new questions along with the Campus Pride organization. The inclusion of such questions would be a strong indicator of how many protections the college might need to work on for their student bodies.

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