American Indian Status

Applying to College
1

Hi, American Indian appears to be the most unrepresented minority by far on college campuses. My daughter, a hs junior, is a member of a tribe with the registration number and paperwork to prove it.

At least on the common app, when you click the American Indian box, a screen pops up that requires you to enter tribe name and registration number before continuing. There is no measuring of blood or family history. You either have the registration number or you don’t.

That written, she’s not involved with the tribal community to any significant extent and certainly won’t spin anything to prove otherwise. Most people would not have a clue she’s legitimately American Indian.

My question is what kind of admission advantage, if any, might she receive as someone with this background but very little cultural interaction with it?

Not really wanting to fully play chance her at this point but she has an unweighted gpa of 4.0, attends a competitive private school, lives in far South Texas, lots of good AP, SAT 1440 (taking ACT next month), she’ll get through highest calculus offered at the end of the year, full year internship with a major city newspaper, lots of volunteer stuff, doing a program at Barnard this summer. Her school doesn’t rank except to tell UT and A&M who its auto admits are.

PREFFERED MAJOR: Cognitive Science

Likely:
U. Of Indiana
U. Of Washington

Target:
U. Of Richmond
Wake Forest
UCSD
UT-Austin, tricky with top 6% auto. Only 3-4 in her class will get auto admission but many more get offered admission at some point
Davidson

Reach:
Barnard
NYU
Emory
Vanderbilt
UCLA
UC-Berkeley
UCSB
Stanford
Northwestern
UVA
Wellesley
Penn
Rice
Boston College
Tufts

Blessed in that cost is not an issue.

Thank you for any comments.

2

Students similar to yours were accepted to many on your reach list at our Texas private school.

3

I noticed this in the class of 2027 admitted students at Tufts:

Ninety-five admitted students have with Native or Indigenous heritage. They include 62 American Indian or Alaska Native students and 33 Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander students; 21 students are enrolled citizens of tribal nations and communities, including Caddo, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Comanche, Muscogee, Nipmuc, Osage, Pawnee, Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, Sault Ste. Marie, Saint Regis Mohawk, Utu Utu Gwaitu Paiute, the Pueblo of Santa Clara, and the Native Village of Scammon Bay.

4

Normally when the topic on Indigenous admissions and highly selective schools comes up, Dartmouth is mentioned. However, most of the reach schools look urban and Dartmouth isn’t urban. For the UC’s, it won’t make an impact on the admissions decisions.

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5

I don’t think interaction with an ethnicity matters. I think you are or you aren’t.

You are.

At schools that count it, you’d have a hook.

Btw IU is a safety vs a likely but UW might be more a match. And likely UCSD is a reach and Wake too. Maybe Wake a high target. Very high.

An eclectic list. How did you decide these schools ?

As you are full pay Tufts could be an obtainable reach.

Any ED plans?

Btw your student will stand on their own but if you look up each school and go to Common Data set section C7 and see if ethnicity is considered. U of Washington - not, for example.

Best of luck.

6

Note that UCs do not consider race or ethnicity in admissions.

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7

True, but Native Americans get free tuition if they are admitted. Not sure if that is all or just CA residents.

8

Native American Opportunity Plan | UC Admissions says it is for California residents, although the tribe of enrollment does not have to be one that is in California.

9

If the Supreme Court doesn’t overturn race-conscious admissions, I’d say that your daughter has a chance at getting in anywhere in the country, including Stanford or any of the other tippy top schools in the US. If it does, and it affects admissions for the class entering in Sept '24, I think she’d still get accepted at some of your likelies and targets, but I think that you should add a real safety that she would be happy to attend, just in case.

10

Mainly my daughter wants to be in or very near major cities. My Dad has lived in Washington state for 12 years which is why UDub is desirable. We’ve spent a lot of time in Seattle and on that campus.

Right now, Barnard would get the ED priority and she says she wants to really go for it, understanding that it’s a reach.

1 Like
11

And ED will help as will ethnic status.

I see IU as your only sure fire admit.

Frankly you just need one if you’re ok attending