<p>I am new here and I am totally amazed by the breadth and depth of accumulated knowledge that is the CC community! I have to admit that I have now spent several hours looking through posts.</p>
<p>My son is only in 8th grade and the only reason I stumbled across this site is thinking about colleges after meeting with the high school guidance counselor to choose his 9th grade schedule.... but now that I have, I thought I may as well ask what is in part a chances question, but perhaps also seeking advice about how to guide my son?</p>
<p>He will be an Asian male legacy at Harvard, which from what I gather will essentially cancel out.... maybe he will have a tougher time being compared to Asian peers (esp since he is doing the Science Olympiad, violin/piano thing) but maybe the legacy will give him a little tip. In terms of "stats", the only stats I have so far for him are all A's at a good Midwestern private school (usually sends one to Harvard yearly) and a 29 on the ACT in 6th grade. </p>
<p>So specific questions:</p>
<ul>
<li>Do you think my estimation that the Asian male / legacy thing cancel out is correct or totally off base?<br></li>
<li>Assuming his GPA/rank/stats end up in the ballpark, does it make a difference to apply early if we get to that point?</li>
<li>What EC/summer activity should I try to encourage or develop and how? Things that we have talked about are computer programming (CTY instructor said he should take college level course) and junior ski patrol (he is an excellent recreational skier). He's also done Science Olympiad (team is going to state and he placed first in two events at regional).</li>
</ul>
<p>Other EC that he does but doesn't have any individual high-level achievement yet -
Orchestra (also going to state and is an officer but he is not first chair), sailing, soccer, baseball which he enjoys but right now all on a recreational or junior varsity level. Oh, he is NJHS but I think that goes with the grades and I assume he will be NHS.
- Any other advice as we start high school? </p>
<p>I am really sorry if this sounds too much like a stage parent... but mostly I hope to gain from the collective wisdom of CC posters as you have been so generous in the past!</p>
<p>As a caring parent, you can present him with opportunities but for the most part, if he gets the attn of a Harvard admissions reader, it will be traits that either he has or doesn’t have – not what he’s done. Is he truly creative? Is he truly concerned about the outside world? Does he inherently seek things out and innately loves excelling in this exploration?</p>
<p>These will allow him to stand out. But you also have to be realistic that in the context of Harvard, very few stand out. Don’t set him up for failure. Guide him to his maximum ability and not to a “name” school.</p>
<p>Yes, for sure I will need to coach him to have realistic expectations. 6% admit rate!! He also happens to be legacy at UPenn so it will be interesting to see if and how that will factor. </p>
<p>In the grand scheme of things, we are in-state at UMich and I think for careers he is interested in it won’t really matter if he ends up at Michigan. I don’t think he is going to be an academic so I am thinking probably for many STEM careers the UM degree will hold up pretty well. </p>
<p>I should probably stop thinking about this for a few years!!!</p>
<p>As you said, I’ll present him with opportunities and let him decide. He does possess many of the qualities you describe but it is yet to be seen in what quantity and whether they sufficiently outweigh his love of playing Civ 5. </p>
<p>Novimom, as a current high school senior, I can tell you that a lot depends upon your son’s sense of initiative, academically and otherwise. If his experience is anything like mine, he will continue to discover new passions, even in high school. Best of luck.</p>
<p>Novimom, I understand that meeting with the high-school counselor can be stress-inducing and can set off worries about college admission, but you are four years away and a bit early to be so freaked out. You have posted the same query about “Asian male legacy” status in two different forums and have also posted a query about legacy status at two colleges, all within the last 12 hours and apparently as late as nearly 2 am your time. </p>
<p>I am a fellow alumna of H and an interviewer, with a son and a daughter, one in high school and one in middle school, who sound a lot like your son in many ways. I would recommend your just letting your son find and develop his interests and passions; nothing that you direct will be as authentic or true. With your background and smarts, I am sure he will not be missing out on any opportunities. If anything, he is, like too many legacies, at risk of being pressured to get into H (or U Penn as well, in your son’s case). I certainly hope there’s not too much talk of H or Penn at your dinner table.</p>
<p>BTW, Novimom, my understanding is that Penn is quite clear about how legacy influences admissions: if student applies early, legacy gives a tip; if s/he doesn’t, legacy doesn’t matter.</p>
<p>I enjoyed reading through the responses to this question on the sister thread in the Parents’ Forum. There was some really good advice! BrownieBaker above has good comments, too. In my experience, S’s HS years passed too quickly and next year he’ll be out of the nest. As my own HS kids say, “Chillax.” Seems like some parents need to remember to focus on college planning and some need to remember to enjoy the ride. You seem like the latter. Good luck and build some wonderful family memories with your kid.</p>
<p>@Novimom sounds like your son is of to a Solid start. I’m a junior in high school, and coming from what I’ve seen friends go through, your son has some excellent extracurriculars. I agree with @EastGrad about the legacy deal. The legacy helps if you apply ED, otherwise it’s pointless. I know of two girls who got in ED to Harvard and Dartmouth with the help of the legacy. However, I am going to agree with everyone else here and say that slowing down a bit won’t hurt. Here’s my word of advice: ask your son to continue the ECs he’s already started, and to add on any big projects or major additions in/after junior year. If he learns all the material, see if he can take the SAT/ACT/Subject test by the end of sophomore year/beginning of junior year. He takes the tests late, it will be hard to focus on everything at once.</p>
<p>To answer your original question: I don’t think Asians are as badly disadvantaged as you think…certainly not enough to overcome legacy.</p>
<p>As for my 2 cents, it might be helpful to encourage his non-academic interests. Let him travel abroad and meet ppl, use H’s network to find him internship and volunteering opportunities, don’t overlook leadership camps, and try to have a sense of humor about it all…adcoms eat that stuff up, and it’s a good way to de-stress.</p>
<p>This may not be PC, but I think only those who fit comfortably into the introverted Asian science nerd stereotype are pushed away. Not everyone is a future STEM professor, and colleges want alumni in industry, politics, and media, where for better or worse social skills and personality often trump IQ. But I’m sure you know this. Part of having an interesting personality is having genuine and interesting passions, where Asian boys’ passion in science is, justifiably or not, perceived to be somewhat “engineered” (side rant, I don’t know why, because immigrants mostly work in STEM, so you’d expect their children to be gifted in and exposed earlier to these fields). </p>
<p>addendum…so unless your kid is good enough in science to bag some shiny olympiad medals or conduct graduate-level research, maybe his time is better worth pursuing other activities, if he’s so inclined</p>