

Worries Over a 2-to-1 Ratio: Where the Boys Aren't  - cwan
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/09/24/charleston

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ojbyrne
"This potential stigma has caused federal concern about admissions processes.
In November the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights began an inquiry into
discrimination against female applicants at liberal arts colleges"

So when there weren't enough women in college, it was because of
discrimination against women. And when there's too many women in college, it's
also because of discrimination against women.

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gregfjohnson
I believe the inquiry was to determine whether discrimination against female
applicants was starting to happen as a way to redress the male/female
imbalance.

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kylec
That's the issue though - for decades there was discrimination _for_ female
applicants to 'redress the male/female imbalance'. It's still being done at a
lot of places. But suddenly now that the scale has tipped in the opposite
direction, the same mechanism triggers an inquiry?

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yummyfajitas
There still is in STEM fields. One wonders why there is no inquiry into that.

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w1ntermute
> Gender gaps are nothing new, but they are problematic for colleges because
> they can be taken to suggest women are seeking higher education, while men
> are not. They can also cause awkward social environments on campuses and, if
> they get wide enough, may discourage men from applying.

Advertising the gap is probably a great way to increase the number of male
applicants.

~~~
cabalamat
I was about to say the same thing. Most young men are interested in sex, and a
2:1 gender ratio is likely to mean that unless they're deformed or have zero
social skills, they'll get plenty.

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m-photonic
Not everyone would agree with your conclusion.

>Jayne Dallas, a senior studying advertising who was seated across the table,
grumbled that the population of male undergraduates was even smaller when you
looked at it as a dating pool. “Out of that 40 percent, there are maybe 20
percent that we would consider, and out of those 20, 10 have girlfriends, so
all the girls are fighting over that other 10 percent,” she said.

Source: [http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/colleges-
where...](http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/08/colleges-where-men-
are-in-supply/)

~~~
cageface
Discard half your options out of the gate and you get the scarcity you
deserve, IMO.

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gamble
It would be interesting to know the male-to-female ratio in trade schools and
apprenticeships. One of the reasons (white) males apply to college in lower
numbers is that they have the easiest access to the good jobs that don't
require a degree. You won't see many women working as oilfield roughnecks,
plumbers, or truck drivers. Without a degree, women tend to be trapped in low-
end service and clerical jobs.

