An overwhelming majority of members of the Class of 2028 — the first class admitted to Harvard after the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action last year — that responded to The Crimson’s freshman survey said Harvard should continue aiming to foster racial diversity in its student body.

Nearly 84 percent of respondents to the survey said a diverse student body should remain a goal for Harvard — almost exactly mirroring the 85 percent of respondents to the Class of 2027 freshman survey who said the same last year.

Harvard’s Class of 2028 applied and gained acceptance to the College amid seismic changes to the admissions landscape. After the ruling, Harvard admissions officers were forced to abandon 50 years of precedent with race-conscious admissions.

In the months following the Court’s decision, Harvard revamped its application questions and replaced the Harvard supplemental optional essay with five required short answer questions that applicants answer in 200 words or less. Harvard also instructed alumni interviewers not to consider an applicant’s race or ethnicity in their evaluations in new guidelines for alumni interviewers.

As universities nationwide began releasing their racial demographic data, dramatic changes in student enrollment cast a spotlight on Harvard.

The College released racial demographics for the Class of 2028 at the beginning of the fall semester, reporting a drop in Black enrollment by 4 percentage points compared with the Class of 2027. Still, University administrators said it could take several years for the full implications of the Supreme Court decision to take effect.

Despite the fall in the share of Black students from 18 to 14 percent of the class, Harvard’s overall racial demographics in the incoming class remained roughly similar to the year prior. The percentage of Hispanic students increased from 14 to 16 percent, and the proportion of Asian American students remained the same at 37 percent.

Affirmative Action and Diversity

The end of the use of race-conscious admissions raised questions for not only admissions officers but also applicants. Members of the freshman class who responded to the survey were split almost exactly 50-50 when asked if they mentioned racial identity in their college essays: 49 percent responded that they did mention race in their essays, while 51 percent said they did not.

Further, one-quarter of respondents said they felt pressure to mention their race in their essays, and 75 percent said they did not.

About 46 percent of freshmen surveyed support the use of affirmative action in higher education admissions, while 21 percent do not. The remaining 33 percent of respondents were unsure.

Approximately one-quarter of freshmen respondents — 26 percent — utilized a private college admissions counselor in their application process.

Legacy Admissions

When asked if they support preferences for legacy students and children of donors in the admissions process, almost two-thirds of the respondents, 64 percent, responded that they did not support legacy admissions.

Of the remaining, 22 percent chose that they were unsure while just 14 percent said they support preferences for legacy students and children of donors in the admissions process.

Respondents to the Class of 2028 freshman survey had similar responses to the Class of 2027. More than 60 percent of respondents to the Class of 2027 survey did not support legacy admissions.

Standardized Testing

Harvard announced a sudden return to its standardized testing policy in 2024 beginning with the Class of 2029, sparking conversations about the efficacy and fairness of standardized metrics in the admissions process. Previously, Harvard’s test-optional policy was set in place for applicants through the Class of 2030.

The majority of respondents to the freshman survey for the Class of 2028 supported Harvard’s return to requiring standardized test scores.

Nearly 60 percent of respondents reported that the change was favorable, while about 19 percent viewed it unfavorably. Of the remaining respondents, 16 percent of respondents had no opinion and 7 percent said they didn’t have enough information to take a firm view.

Of the Class of 2028 respondents, 77 percent took the SAT, while 23 percent reported not having taken the exam. In contrast, 33 percent of the Class of 2028 took the ACT exam, while 67 percent did not.

—Staff writer Michelle N. Amponsah can be reached at michelle.amponsah@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @mnamponsah.

—Staff writer Hiral M. Chavre can be reached at hiral.chavre@thecrimson.com.