Positive Discrimination in Higher Education; A Comparative Study of the United States, India and Iran

Positive discrimination implies any action such as admission to universities, employment, public contracts, commercial loans, and the right to buy or sell land on the basis of membership in a particular group for the purpose of fostering greater equality. These actions go beyond anti-discrimination policy. Their existence may be a result of constitutional requirements, administrative laws and regulations - such as requirements for public contracts court orders or voluntary action. The goal of positive discrimination is to counter social behaviors that reproduce group inequality even in the absence of intentional discrimination. This descriptive-comparative study is intended to examine the experience of positive discrimination in higher education in the United States, India, and Iran. The paper will argue that positive discrimination programs in the field of higher education, regardless of the terms that are supposed to eliminate them over time, will create double discrimination.