# Quotas?



## IndianaBones (Mar 23, 2009)

Does anyone know if there is a quota policy (male/female/minority/age group, etc.) in place when it comes to admits?  

That would certainly skew the decision-making procedures considerably.


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## Sonia (Mar 24, 2009)

I'm sure they try to assemble a class of people with different backgrounds, but I doubt they restrict themselves with official quotas. I can't imagine that fitting a certain "type" would trump a great creative sample.


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## cabezon (Mar 24, 2009)

Hey Indiana, I'll take a stab at it for sh*ts n' giggles.

I think I know what you mean, and I doubt they have any "quotas". If they did, can you imagine the meeting... 

"alright gang, listen up! We need one asian, one black guy, one international, a few women and throw in an older gay guy..." 

Maybe I'm wrong. 

I do, however, feel (and hope) that they choose people based on their diverse background and intersting life stories regardless of their ethnicity, gender, age etc. That way the diversity shows in the work put out. People of different backgrounds will interpret stories from their perspective. Ok I can go forever so I'll stop. 

Yeah, that might sound like it came straight from the film school info pamphlet but I believe it to be true. 

Anyone else have a different take on this?

good times


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## Sonia (Mar 24, 2009)

Didn't UCLA have an optional diversity essay in their application? Not for the film school, but for the general graduate school.

Still, even if UCLA has suggested quotas, I doubt the film school would strictly adhere to them. Sort of like USC and the GRE””the graduate school had a minimum score requirement, but if the film school liked an applicant whose score was too low, they could basically overrule the graduate school.

But I could be wrong.


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## cabezon (Mar 24, 2009)

Nay on UCLA. I did get asked to interview with Chapman so I'm getting ready for that.

What about you Indiana?


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## Sonia (Mar 24, 2009)

You might be interested in  this article on UCLA admissions by Ward Connerly, former University of California Regent, who opposes affirmative action in state universities.

Also check out California Prop 209.


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## Jayimess (Mar 24, 2009)

Yeah, they do quotas, every class has to be mostly Caucasian male Americans.  It's really limiting the chances for non-Caucasian non-males from other countries.

There's no good answer to this question as long as it still has to be asked, but I don't have a clue to the answer.

 

Quotas suck.


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## Jayimess (Mar 24, 2009)

That's the dominant demographic here, Caucasian American males, but that was also sarcasm, dripping with sadness over the concept of quotas and affirmative action policies.

I'm a part-Caucasian non-male American, and I'd hate to think that entire schools and workforces  would be Caucasian American males without "equal opportunity" sorts of "laws," because that also would imply, if not insist, that I, and tons of other students only got in these programs due to our race and/or lack of boy-parts.

It would imply, if not insist, that if left without quota interventions, nobody would ever admit, or hire, anyone but white American males.

I don't believe that blacks, women, any "diversity candidates" want to get anything in life as a handout *"due to"* race and gender, nor do I want to be labeled as having gotten anything in life *"despite"* race and gender.  

I'd like to think myself, and all of my classmates, earned their place here by their words, not their demographics.


I'm an idealist.  Quotas suck.


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## jthamilton (Mar 24, 2009)

Uhh..last I checked plenty of white dudes get into film school. If you  aren't one of them, my guess is that your time would be better spent working on your application than making excuses about how some unqualified minority stole your spot.


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## Jayimess (Mar 25, 2009)

JT,  I've made it clear that I'm mostly not Caucasian and completely un-male, and I go to film school already at USC, so I don't think I'm making excuses.

If anything, I was sarcastically lamenting the fact that I took one of the few minority spots because the majority must go to white males.

Ahhh.  Race and gender.  Can't ever discuss it like grown folk in this country.


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## jthamilton (Mar 25, 2009)

Comment not at all directed at you, Jayimess.


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## d_lefeb (Mar 25, 2009)

I know Columbia doesn't. My year is nearly 50% international, less than of third are women, but the year above me is far less international and has way more women. So yeah, there is no hard and fast rule here.


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## dragynally (Mar 25, 2009)

I hate topics like this...I don't know if schools use quotas. All I know is I am sick of ppl assuming I only got anywhere b/c I'm black and female. No the minority didn't 'steal' your spot....Sorry if I seem angry. I know most of you don't feel this way.


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## tabbycat (Mar 25, 2009)

eh.  All this talk about quotas is confusing to me.  I'm half white, so does this mean that if there are quotas, that the minority half of me will get in somewhere but the white half won't?  In  a thousand years or maybe sooner there won't be any "pure" this or "pure" that anyway.  Even the white "half" of me is part Irish and part Scottish and there's probably some German in there too.  Nothing against people who are 100% anything.  But I can't even fit myself into a group so how can admissions?  Even gender groups are getting confusing nowadays.  The whole system is antiquated.

BTW, when I have to fill out a form where they ask for my ethnicity, and they tell me I can only check one box, I don't even answer.


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## Jayimess (Mar 25, 2009)

Quotas assume that anyone but Caucasian men need a "hand up" to get anywhere in life.  I refuse to believe that's true.

As I've said before, I don't want to think that I got anything in life DUE TO my race (i.e. getting a hand up for a quota).  I also refuse to believe that I got something DESPITE my race, because that makes it seem like being a bi-racial female is some sort of obstacle I overcame.

I'd also hate to think programs stop admitting a particular minority after hitting their quota...i.e. "Ah, Tom, we've got two negroids, that's enough, so let's move on to the yellows."

God, I hope not.


The numbers are there, but that doesn't mean we have to abide by them.


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## Jayimess (Mar 25, 2009)

@tabby...

The first film I made here was called "one box," it followed one such girl's journey to categorize herself.

When I was in third grade, the Iowas (proficiency tests for US students, if you don't know) asked for my race, pick only one  I asked my teacher, Miss Herrick, which one to pick.  I was really upset...I felt like I would hurt one parent no matter what I did.  She told me to pick them both, or leave it blank.

I left it blank.  I never do those tracking things.  If I could get away without checking gender, I would...but my name gives it away, I suppose.


My writing, however, always reflects my background...

It's funny, coming here, I was never concerned about racial or gender diversity.

I was mostly worried about not having gone to a good enough undergrad, lol.


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## ninth_solstice (Mar 25, 2009)

I am a half-caucasian, half-asian, gay, international female applicant. They'd have a field day with me! If I am accepted anywhere this year I believe it would be to do with my potential and not because of the boxes I tick. I certainly hope that schools stick to advancing talent and not fulfilling bullsh*t quotas...any discrimination, positive or negative is insulting.


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## dragynally (Mar 25, 2009)

I love when ppl know about their background or can say they are biracial. See I'm what me and my friends call a 'mutt' but since black is what you see black is what you get...but yes I to hope for a wonderful mixed up world.


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## tabbycat (Mar 25, 2009)

> Originally posted by Jayimess:
> 
> When I was in third grade, the Iowas (proficiency tests for US students, if you don't know) asked for my race, pick only one  I asked my teacher, Miss Herrick, which one to pick.  I was really upset...I felt like I would hurt one parent no matter what I did.  She told me to pick them both, or leave it blank.



hehe... I would usually pick "Hawaiian/Pacific Islander" and "Alaskan native" just to mess with them


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## Jayimess (Mar 25, 2009)

> Originally posted by dragynally:
> I love when ppl know about their background or can say they are biracial. See I'm what me and my friends call a 'mutt' but since black is what you see black is what you get...but yes I to hope for a wonderful mixed up world.



I guess I look more black than white, though it seems in recent years that people don't make such clean lines anymore....the days of "what ARE you" questions from strangers have faded, as have the assumptions that I am of Middle Eastern or Latin descent...hooray for progress and the Obamanation...

But I can't imagine only claiming one...that's dismissing one entire side of my family.  Plenty of people have tried to make me do it, though...I'm actually working on research of inter/biracial American portrayals in the media for a Crit Studies project, I'm really excited.  It's so nice to see that my kids won't have such a tough time..."mixed" won't be so foreign to so many people anymore, and they won't be forced by the masses to identify one way or the other.

I'm happy happy happy to be both.


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## IndianaBones (Mar 23, 2009)

Does anyone know if there is a quota policy (male/female/minority/age group, etc.) in place when it comes to admits?  

That would certainly skew the decision-making procedures considerably.


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## ninth_solstice (Mar 25, 2009)

Yeah exactly! I used to tell people I wasn't half anything but double lol


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## AshleyM (Mar 25, 2009)

I DETEST those boxes.  I'm "Caucasian" or "White", I suppose, but don't know why we get the boring "white" check box when I'm so much more than "white".  I'm British, German, Swedish, etc... and usually check other and write British- or European-American, since I'm first generation American.  If everyone else can be "something"-American, then so can I. 



> BTW, when I have to fill out a form where they ask for my ethnicity, and they tell me I can only check one box, I don't even answer.


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## AshleyM (Mar 25, 2009)

As you should be. 



> I'm happy happy happy to be both.


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## Jayimess (Mar 27, 2009)

They don't even have a box for Middle Eastern most of the time, right?  One of my classmates commented on that when I made my 507 about the boxes.


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## Jayimess (Mar 27, 2009)

AshleyM, I'm from a part of the country where Caucasian ethnicities are explored, defined, and celebrated, so it's weird to me that here in LA, white people just seem to be....white people.  I'm used to Polish, Slav, German, Italian, Irish, etc neighborhoods and restaurants and markets, but not so much here...I can't seem to find good Irish corned beef or Italian foods, and they don't seem to have authentic Polish anything.

It's weird, how clearly you can see the patterns of immigrant migration when you compare different regions of this crazy nation...


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## AshleyM (Mar 28, 2009)

Hey Jayimess,

I'm pretty much a California native, having lived in different places up and down the state for all of my life (except for a few years in Illinois and New Mexico).  So, I totally know what you mean about white people here just being...white.  They don't seem to embrace their background like people of other ethnicities.  It's good to know that it's not like that in the rest of the country.  Maybe they're too far removed from their roots for it to be important?  Who knows.  I found a recent class assignment enlightening in which we all did a presentation about where our families came from.  One girl in particular stood out to me, reporting that her family is American and has been for generations (living in Texas), so that's what they consider themselves.


***Disclaimer:  My apologies if I've offended anyone.  It wasn't my intention.***


> Originally posted by Jayimess:
> AshleyM, I'm from a part of the country where Caucasian ethnicities are explored, defined, and celebrated, so it's weird to me that here in LA, white people just seem to be....white people.  I'm used to Polish, Slav, German, Italian, Irish, etc neighborhoods and restaurants and markets, but not so much here...I can't seem to find good Irish corned beef or Italian foods, and they don't seem to have authentic Polish anything.
> 
> It's weird, how clearly you can see the patterns of immigrant migration when you compare different regions of this crazy nation...


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## Jayimess (Mar 29, 2009)

I personally did not take offense, as I enjoy talking about this topic outside of film school admissions.

Now for a certain to be rambling post:

I spoke with some of my white friends who are from here, and there aren't many of them in film school, about this same subject last fall, and it's weird.  You don't seem to see many people in LA with first generation European immigrants for parents or grandparents, where it seems like everyone's got at least one back home...those freshly immigrated are the ones that created, and maintain, their own "areas."

So here, that likeliness tend to go to Asian and Mexican folks.

It's weird, I lost my exposure to Caucasian ethnic celebration, but I had no such exposure to new culture that I do here.  Cleveland may have all of those Caucasian neighborhoods like little Italy, etc, but there was only one Asian market, and there sure isn't a Thai Town or Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia, or bi-lingual EVERYTHING.

I just wish we could have all of the cultural celebrations from both because I am a spoiled brat.

The American thing is interesting.   I am multi-racial, very clear cut, immigrant lines...I have grandparents from other countries.

Were I to pop out children one day, my kids  aren't gonna be telling the average person that Great grandad Jayimess was from Jamaica, which is a blended ethnicity as well...my granddad's father wasn't Jamaican, he was Scottish. 

They'll likely just say they're American.  It's coming to mean "Caucasian" less and less.  

i.e.  Toni Morrison once said that "In this country, American means white.  Everybody else has to hyphenate.

Maybe the dilution of Caucasian ethnic identification is the first inkling that our nation's on the verge of birthing an American race of sorts, blended from the world?  If I breed one day, my kids are not going to remember granddad's accent, or ever hear stories about growing up in other countries...just in Ohio, lol.  And only from me, because my parents are both dead.

I don't think their connection to Jamaica will be as strong as mine is...they won't care about finding great ethnic food because it reminds them of a parent or grandparent; it'll just be food.

So, yeah, in a different way than myself, they're gonna be true Americans.


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## solojones (Mar 29, 2009)

To be fair, Ohio and California sort of *are* different countries


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