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The directive is made clear in the guide for alumni interviews with applicants. “To the extent an applicant’s race, ethnicity or national origin seems apparent to an interviewer, the interviewer may not consider that information in the interview process, including evaluation, making recommendations about, or assigning ratings to the student,” the handbook says. “Since race, ethnicity, and national origin may not be considered, interviewers should not reference them in the interview report.” Harvard didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. The Crimson said Harvard did not respond to its earlier request for comment on the guidelines. In a landmark case involving Harvard, the US Supreme Court in 2023 ended the use of race-based affirmative action in college admissions, overruling nearly half a century of precedent and depriving selective universities of a tool they said was essential for keeping their campuses diverse. Harvard enrolled fewer Black and Latino freshmen, and more Asian American students, in its incoming class this fall, a sign of a growing demographic shift at elite colleges two years after that Supreme Court ruling, the Globe recently reported. Black students make up 8.9 percent of Harvard’s 1,675 first-year students, down from 10.4 percent last fall. Another 8.5 percent of the class is Hispanic or Latino, compared to 11.8 percent a year ago. The number of Asian American students rose from 27.4 to 31.6 percent since last fall. It did not explicitly list its percentage of white students. More recently, Harvard has remained locked in negotiations with the Trump administration to resolve the government’s concerns over its campus culture. President Trump said Oct. 19 that his administration had reached “a concept of a deal” worth $500 million where Harvard would open trade schools — backtracking a bit from comments he made earlier this month where he declared a deal had been finalized. In its alumni interview handbook, under a “do’s and do not” section, Harvard lists several other areas to avoid during a conversation with an applicant. Alumni are told not to ask for a resume or test scores, comment on a student’s physical appearance, ask if anyone in their household went to college or what their parents do for work, ask if Harvard’s their first choice or where else they’re applying, discuss their own children or other applicants to Harvard, or speculate on what affinity groups an applicant may join on campus. In addition, the handbook advises against forming “any impressions or expectations, positive or negative, about the student’s probability of admission. Even if you think they are entirely qualified or unqualified, it is not an interviewer’s place to make comments about a student’s chance of admission, even if well-intentioned.” Material from prior Globe stories was used in this report. Aidan Ryan of the Globe Staff contributed.
