Did Barack Obama benefit from affirmative action in attending Columbia University and Harvard?

Answer 1

Yes. He first earned an undergraduate degree from Columbia University in 1983, and after working for five years, he attended Harvard Law School; he graduated with academic honors and a law degree in 1991.

Answer 2

No he didn't. He didn't even state race on his application.

That is a misleading reply,

Obama had his transcripts sealed! Therefore you are speculating probably due the the fact you lean left.

Obama has a lot of questions to Answer and until all records are released speculation on both sides will be claimed.

What should be worrisome is if those who say he isn't qualified to be President are proved right.

The outcome would be unthinkable.....

Answer 3

By all accounts, he applied the same way any prospective graduate student does: he had sufficiently good grades on the Law School exams, made a good presentation about his academic achievements as an undergraduate, and gave compelling reasons for his interest in becoming a lawyer. Harvard's admissions committee does not tell the public how it makes its decisions, but it is a very competitive and rigorous process, and based on a number of criteria. Barack Obama would not have been admitted unless the committee believed he had all of the credentials to ensure success at Harvard. (It turned out to be a correct decision to admit him: he graduated with academic honors, and was the first African-American editor of the Harvard Law Review.)

Answer 4

There is not much evidence to support this assertion, even though some of his political opponents, and several conservative talk show hosts, have suggested it. By his own account, the president was an indifferent student when he first attended a small, local college in Los Angeles. But eventually, he got motivated, got accepted to Columbia, and began to improve his grades. When he was accepted at Harvard, it was based on his work experience, his presentation package (application, essay, writing sample, law school entrance exam scores), and his undergraduate grades at Columbia University, as well as on his references-- he was an older student, having been working for a few years before he sought his law degree. No credible reports have ever surfaced that he got in due to any quotas; and given that he graduated from Harvard with academic honors, he certainly proved he belonged there.

Answer 5

For some reason, we get asked this a lot. But the answer is there's no credible evidence he benefited from Affirmative Action in either college. (Claims by internet bloggers offer no proof, and the same is true for claims by conservative columnists.) It certainly seems that he got into Columbia the same way other students did-- he had good enough grades from Occidental College, he wrote an interesting admission essay, and he made a good presentation to the admissions committee. Professors who evaluated his application for Harvard Law School, long before he was famous, have stated that his race was not a factor. They did seem aware that he was an older student, because he had worked for a few years before applying to Law School. But again, I have read no quotes that indicated he received special treatment of any kind in the admission process.

Answer 6

No, there is no evidence to support that statement.

Answer 7

No. In fact, he did not even specify his race when he applied.

Answer 8

President Obama received both grants and student loans, which helped him to attend Harvard Law School.