How Can Colleges Attract More Minority Students?

A survey of business school deans at more than 100 U.S. colleges and universities reveals that hiring minority professors is the key to attracting minority students. Asked to report on their experience since hiring minority professors, 79.8% of business schools deans say hiring minority professors has helped them attract more minority students.

“Colleges and universities have tried many methods of increasing student diversity — but this survey demonstrates that having a diverse faculty is a sure way of attaining that goal,” says Bernard J. Milano, President of the KPMG Foundation, administrator of The PhD Project.

The PhD Project, a multi-million dollar corporate and academic-led effort to increase minority representation among business professors, conducted the survey. Since The PhD Project was founded in 1994, the number of minority professors at U.S. business schools has more than doubled, from 294 to 623. The PhD Project surveyed business school deans who have recently hired minority professors, to see how these new professors are impacting education in the classroom.

Other results from the survey include:

* 91.4% report that minority professors positively impact the education of minority students

* 87.5% say that minority professors are having a positive impact on career mentoring for minority students

* 73.3% reported that minority professors are positively impacting the attitudes of non-minority faculty toward minority students and minority issues

* 69.9% say that students, regardless of race, who have taken a class from a minority professor, will be better prepared for a business career

Even though the number of minority professors is projected to rise to 900 by 2006, this still would not provide a minority professor for each of the 1200 U.S. business schools. Currently, less than 3% of business school professors are African-American, Hispanic-American or Native American. “There is much more to do to create a diverse faculty, which will in turn provide a more complete educational experience for all students,” says Milano.