Shifting the Lens: A Critical Examination of Diversity Discourses in College Recruiting

• In Event: Roundtable Session 7
  In Roundtable Session: Critical Analysis in Education Policy

Abstract

This paper examines how diversity is constructed in college recruiting, with a focus on how discourses, language and images influence the college choice process for students and impact the goal to increase diversity in sustainable ways. Use of Critical Discourse Analysis highlights how recruiters’ interpretations of diversity are practiced and aligned with those represented in institutional messaging in college admissions. Methods include an analysis of online and in-print admissions literature and exploring how recruiters understand “diversity” in their engagement with students. This research demonstrates how distinct representations of diversity support or reject particular identities, which affect recruiting and the college choice process. This study also illustrates why the positioning of diversity matters in supporting equitable admissions policies and practices.

Author

• Leah Hakkola, University of Maine at Orono