Although most applications for admission are read by three admissions officers, applications submitted by students of certain minorities--African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Hispanic Americans, Mexican-Americans, Native Americans and Puerto Ricans--are read a fourth time.

"We want to make sure that everything is considered fairly," Carroll says. "Sometimes things could be biased against Asian-Americans and we try to make sure things are fair."

For example, Carroll says, she may have a better understanding of the experiences students list on their applications, such as attending Chinese school.

"I went and I kind of know what that means," Carroll says. "[I know] the pressures their parents put on them."

Despite the emphasis on minority recruiting, Carroll says all students are given equal treatment in the admissions process.

"We treat Asian-Americans just as we treat all the other ethnic groups," she says. "[The process] is fair to every individual who applies. We don't pit people against each other and we don't have any quotas."

In 1990, the U.S. Department of Education completed a two-year review of Harvard's admissions process and found no evidence that Harvard had a quota limiting the number of Asian-American students accepted.

Harvard Admissions

Despite the findings of the Department of Education, some Asian-American students say their ethnicity is still a disadvantage in the admissions process.

"The consensus seems to be that being Asian in applying to Ivy League schools does not help," says Yvonne M. Kao '00.

Michael M. Luo '98, who is a Crimson editor, says high school students accept the fact that their likelihood of admission to Harvard may be smaller because of their ethnicity, but that they do not tend to have an "angry attitude" about the situation.

Quach says students in his high school recruiting sessions often asked him whether it is tougher for Asian-Americans to get in to Harvard.

The numbers do lend credence to the speculation, showing a leveling off in Asian-American matriculation during the past five years.

Although Asian-American representation grew from 5.5 percent of the Class of 1983 to 19.6 percent of the Class of 1994, Asian-Americans make up only 16.8 percent of the Class of 1997, 18 percent of the Class of 1999 and about 16 percent of the Class of 2000.

The federal review attributed the relatively lower percentage of Asian-Americans admitted to preferences given to athletes and legacies.