Restating J Arthur's statement for clarity ...
The proportion of Asian students at the University of California, and for that matter here at the University of Washington, is very substantially higher than the proportion of Asians in the local general population.
What is less well known, but openly discussed among many academics, is that Americans do not respect education and educators as much as those from other countries and cultures. In my class last year I had two African-American students ... black Americans? No! One was from Egypt the other a caucasian from South Africa. In the last 6 years I have had only 2 or 3 blacks in my classes that were not African by birth. And the proportion of Asians (Japan, China, Philipines, Indonesia, Vietnam) probably three to six times their presence in the general population. Others that are over-represented compared to their presence in the general population are Eastern Europeans (Russia, Ukraine, Armenia) and South Asians (Indian and Pakistan).
Fascinating as an instructor to see persons who came to the US on technology visas more interested in extending their education than the American's whose jobs they are taking. And a very sad commentary on American mores.
