Abstract

CAMPOS-CHAVARRIA, Benjamín. Affirmative action or privilege? Analysis of reactions in the press regarding the suspension of the academic aptitude test at the Costa Rica Institute of Technology in 2020. Espiga [online]. 2025, vol.24, n.49, pp.41-77. ISSN 2215-454X.  http://dx.doi.org/10.22458/re.v24i49.5696.

The objective of this article is to analyze the reactions in November 2020 to the change in the admission process at the Costa Rica Institute of Technology, as expressed in the newspaper La Nación, and to critically examine them through the lens of Charles W. Mills’ concept of white ignorance, Miranda Fricker’s epistemic injustice, educational apartheid, space and privilege as framed by Shannon Sullivan, ontological expansiveness, and to a lesser extent, other theoretical perspectives from Sarah Ahmed and Achille Mbembé. Due to the pandemic, the academic aptitude test was replaced in 2020 with a mechanism based on academic performance grades, which divided applicants into groups according to the type of secondary school they attended. The study analyzes 15 articles published within the 14 days following the public announcement of admission results, from November 10 to November 23, through a critical discourse analysis. The findings reveal that most of these reactions portrayed a negative image of the new 2021 student cohort, accused socialism, and warned of harm to the country, among other claims, which do little justice to the actual events. The analysis highlights how these narratives ignore the historical inequalities and challenges faced by certain populations in accessing high-demand spots at public universities, where they compete under unequal conditions with economically or socially privileged groups.

Keywords : Admission conditions; Inequality; Mass media; Social exclusion; University.

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