<p>It's not that complicated. Being black and underpriviliged might have helped her. But that is not the SOLE reason she got in. The adcom obviously saw through the test scores (which were pretty good by themselves, though not stellar) to a wonderful person described by recs and essays. AA might have helped in this case, it might have been a make/break situation even, but there is no way we can discount her admission just because she is black.</p>
<p>Although I would say pretty much anyone applying would want to play the urm card in admissions, because it does confer a slight advantage. But just like you see asians apart from the super-high-achieving stereotypes get in, you'll also see urms that would've deserved their spot. We need to see the entire package.. not just basing our judgements on test scores alone.</p>
<p>Oracle1, Let's get real! Your SATs, as reported in previous posts, come to a total of 2230. You also report that your SAT IIs are 710, 690 and 650. Your GPA (UW) is a 4.0. How are these stats that much more stellar than the OPs? I am not sure where you saw her class rank, but I could not find it. I also could not find yours in your posts.</p>
<p>Again, good luck to you on your other applications.</p>
<p>"The adcom obviously saw through the test scores (which were pretty good by themselves"</p>
<p>Not by Stanford standards for the regular folks held to a much higher standard. </p>
<p>"AA might have helped in this case"</p>
<p>Why are you phrasing it in the form of a queston?</p>
<p>"because it does confer a slight advantage"</p>
<p>A 200+ average bump on the SAT's confers a lot more than slight. </p>
<p>"also see urms that would've deserved their spot."</p>
<p>True.....and AA takes away from URM who actually deserved a spot, and therefore discounts the diploma of all URM's. This particular applicant, did not deserve a spot more than the droves of 2300+ 4.0 asian prodigies who were rejected. </p>
<p>"not just basing our judgements on test scores alone."</p>
<p>we are basing it on gpa, test scores, and ECs. IMO the OP seems like a really really nice person. I do not mean to diminish her achievement, but it is naive for some on this board to think that she got an acceptance based on merit.</p>
<p>MSDAD... you failed to mention EC's or updated SAT's but I am on the lower end of the applicants who got rejected. take a stroll down the discussion boards and you will see droves of people with even higher stats rejected as well.</p>
<p>I guess--in my humble opinion, of course--both sides of the argument are rationalising a bit; and they have good reasons to. The people who don't think she got in based on her merit feel that she took up their spots. The people who think otherwise hope that their chances are not lessened by aa.</p>
<p>but I gotta agree with oracle1.</p>
<p>as one SAT proctor puts it, "we gotta make up for what we did to them in the slave days."</p>
<p>Oracle1, I do not want to seem to be personalizing this discussion, but there is something wrong here. In regards to updated SATs, it appears by your own words that you do not have updated SATs.</p>
<p>First of all, you indicated in a post dated 01 December:</p>
<h2>The SAT only game </h2>
<p>i am trying to get into the elite schools HYP and such, the rest of my application is strong, but i wanted to get your opinion on whether my SAT scores will give me a slight bump up compared to the other applications, a slight bump down, or won't help or hurt. i don't think i have time to retake ..so here they are....let me know what you think
SAT Reasoning
Critical Reading 770
Writing 740
Math 720
Subject Tests
Math 2C 710
Chem 690
Lit 650</p>
<p>You go on to say in that same thread:
"the next time i could take the sat 2's is january...and that would only be for rd schools...."</p>
<p>On 08 December, you start a thread entitled, "Stanford EA Decisions Have Been Posted" and you indicate that, "I just got accepted! how about everybody else?"</p>
<p>On 16 December, you state, "deferred....now what?
i got deferred from my top choice school....what steps would you all recomend i take to get in in april"</p>
<p>Too many inconsistencies for me to point out.</p>
<p>We? We as in the white race? I'm not white man.</p>
<p>"we gotta make up for what we did to them in the slave days."</p>
<p>^ Most ignorant statement ever. They were slaves hundreds of years ago. I doubt the "chains of slavery" have a significant effect on blacks in America nowadays.</p>
<p>What about the Mexicans? What did America ever do to Hispanics? What do you need to make up to the Mexicans? Don't tell me the Mexican American War. Most of the Hispanics still stayed in the US.</p>
<p>What about the Chinese and other asians? Opium Wars, railroad, all those Chinatown slaughters, the US invasion and rampage in Korea and Vietnam? What about that? When is the US going to make up for that?</p>
<p>AA is just some hypocritical program to make those aryans in charge look compassionate.</p>
<p>personally, I dont see how hard this is to udnerstand. many ppl here dont seem to have some basic logic. </p>
<p>As college admissions are harder these days, MIT says 70% of applicants are well qualified for MIT. I suspect similar situation goes with stanford. Lets say 60% deserve Stanford.
the op got in b/c of her urm status, this is pretty much undisputable. But then, it doesnt mean she doesn't deserve it! She still deserves it! just like every other 60% applicant who deserves it but couldn't get in!
just b/c she got in by her urm status doesn't mean she doesn't deserve it, she's probably as good as the rest 60% applicant who deserves it. </p>
<p>So, basically I just want to point out this is 2 different arguements. Please use some logic when debating. </p>
<p>Now, i can simply list out them, in case some "Dad" wants to debate.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>did the op get in b/c of her urm status</p></li>
<li><p>does she deserve it.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>wow, some pretty petty sad and jealous posters here...I am going to defend msmdad...he was right on...and if he notices that a poster is inconsitent in his posts, well, proof is in the pudding</p>
<p>as for those who think msmdad has an issue because he is talking on this site, you "kids" at once want to be respected for being young adults, but when it comes down to it, you use the "youth card" to slam someone who has made some intelligent posts</p>
<p>\if you want to be treated like children, fine we can do that, but if you want to be have a chance at an intelligent debate, don't throw in, ah we are just kids garbage</p>
<p>I have no clue about the OP, but from some of the ignorant posts in response, I know a lot more about some of the rest of you..pretty scary stuff from young adults to have such hatred</p>
<p>hatred come from unjustice...at last from those ppl's point of view. </p>
<p>I have no more hatred, b/c I already gave up about it. I know there's now way america's gonna change, and since I'm asian+international, I'm even in a worse position.</p>
<p>But some ppl still have "dreams" or "hopes" I must say? I certainly understand how they feel.</p>
<p>But on the other hand, you can think about those international asian students who stand in a far worse position than asian Americans :)</p>
<p>by the way, although I have no opinion, I do have a issues for logic. I can't stand people thinking they're debating when they have no logic whatsoever.</p>
<p>Just like what I previously mentioned, </p>
<p>Whether the op got in b/c of urm (which is likely she did) doesn't directly mean she doesn't deserve it. Since she got in b/c of urm and deserve it, why is that an insult?</p>
<p>btw, citygirlsmom, I might have to change something from my last post. I have to say I dont think people here have"hatred", it's just that they feel unfair, they feel unjustice, which is totally reasonable. I have to say hatred is too harsh, and is again, completely misleading. (where's the hate? I thought everyone's just talking about their opinions on the system?)</p>
<p>why is everyone hating on the original poster. jeez. Just say 'Congrats' and move on. Affrimative action is something you gotta deal with...it aint gonna change so suck it up. Stop complaining. Life ain't fair, just like slavery wasn't.</p>
<p>I know I said I'd leave this thread, but I've been thinking about affirmative action lately, and one idea has stuck out in my mind. Was it not Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who dreamed of a nation "where [people] will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character"?</p>
<p>AA happens.. life isn't fair, and we all know it. Heck, I'm an Asian male, and AA doesn't get worse for anyone else. And you don't see me complaining... ever. </p>
<p>And there is a point: something like 70% of applicants are cut out to do the work at Stanford. There is NOTHING suggesting the OP is not in that 70%, so by all means she deserves her spot as much as anyone else. Also, the Stanford ADCOM chose her because she fits the campus - she's someone they want. That's how they differentiate between the 70% qualified applicants. If the Stanford adcom itself decided the OP belongs on campus, who are you to disagree?</p>
<p>I still would rather have college admissions without AA. But I think you guys are coming down too harsh on the OP.</p>