What Is a Diversity Candidate?
A diversity candidate is an individual who brings unique perspectives to an organization. Diversity candidates include minorities, women, people with disabilities, gays, lesbians and members of other non-traditional groups.
Diversity candidates also include individuals who bring a diversity of thought to an organization. This includes members of non-traditional groups, as well members of the dominant group with different socioeconomic, educational, or geographical backgrounds than the majority of an organization’s members.
Minority candidates are defined as those who are not members of the dominant group. For example, Asian candidates are considered minority candidates in the United States because they are not Caucasians. A diversity candidate can be a minority or a non-minority. For example, a candidate who did not attend college would be considered a diversity candidate in a business where the vast majority of employees graduated from Ivy League universities, regardless of his minority status. Though the candidate may not have the educational background of his colleagues, he may have life experience that is uniquely valuable to the organization. This may include experience running a business or having a specific skill set, such as computer programming. Diversity candidates are sought by both public and private sector employers. Employers are motivated to keep a watchful eye on diversity in their organizations in order to adjust to the changing demographics of society.
