<p>I'm half Filipino, half white, and just wondering if being Filipino helps, since I don't really want to indicate "Asian" on my application, even though Filipinos are technically Asian. I've looked around, but haven't gotten a definitive answer. If I'm lumped into the Asian group, then my chances are hurt because they are an ORM, but I know that Filipinos aren't known for being smart like Chinese and Indian people so I'm hoping it would help me at least a little bit instead of condemning me, especially because I plan on applying to some of the more competitive schools, like the Ivy leagues. Have you guys heard of anything or had any experiences about whether or not being Filipino helps or hurts in admissions?</p>
<p>They have a box for you to check. Usually the box will say “Asian/Pacific Islander” and you’ll pick that one. Sometimes they let you be more specific, but not usually.</p>
<p>The Philippines used to be a Spanish colony. If you can trace your heritage back to the Hispanic portion of the population, you might gain an application edge. Otherwise you’re probably better off not identifying and thus being assessed as white.</p>
<p>Oh okay, so if it does turn out that I’m from the Hispanic portion of the Filipino population, how the heck could I incorporate that into my application?!</p>
<p>Race and ethnicity (Hispanic) are two separate questions on college applications; Hispanics can be of any race(s).</p>
<p>That said, thinking that checking the Hispanic box is going to give one a big leg up in admissions is simplistic. Adcoms are not naive, they consider many factors beyond self-identification: country of origin, SES, overcoming adversity, participation in the Hispanic community, etc.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Check the Hispanic box, maybe join Spanish club. But as entomom notes, there are no gimmes in the college application process: all other things being equal, you might get a slight edge in admission, perhaps comparable to being a legacy. But it’s not a golden ticket: nationwide, there are plenty of smart Hispanics with killer credentials competing for the top slots. It’s just that competition among Asians is even more brutal.</p>
1 Like
<p>^^ It would be a stretch to claim a Hispanic heritage, and wrong to mark Pacific Islander. Except for very special and specific circumstance, Filipinos are considered Asians. In the OP case, the best alternative is to mark White or leave it blank. </p>
<p>
</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Fwiw, what do the poor Brazilians mark. :)</p>
<p>Oh okay, thanks! But I’ve heard some apps let you mark Filipino as a sub-category of Asian so that the admission officers actually see you’re not Chinese, Korean, or Indian(which I’m assuming is what all the competitive Asians are). Would it still be better, in that case, to mark it as white or leave it blank? I mean, they probably let you be more specific for a reason, right?</p>
<p>What may be favorable or unfavorable in this context depends on the college (i.e. whether it perceives that it has a shortage or surplus of Asian generally or Filipino specifically students, and whether it cares enough to consider that in admissions). At colleges which do not consider race or ethnicity in admissions (see the common data set, section C7), it does not matter for admissions.</p>
<p>xiggi,</p>
<p>Brazilians are an interesting case. On the CA, after the Hispanic box is checked, you are asked to describe your background, one of the options is: South America (excluding Brazil). However, probably the largest Hispanic scholarship program, NHRP includes Brazilians in their definition of Hispanic.</p>
<p>I agree w/ucbalumnus, diversity is considered differently depending on the school. For instance, Amherst includes Asians in their diversity weekend. They are likely looking mainly at recent immigrants from SE Asia who are of relatively low SES.</p>
<p>Oh okay…but my friend told me that marking “multiracial” is also helpful. Is this true?</p>
<p>Think about it, multiracial can mean a multitude of combinations. Do you think that adcoms view them all the same? Again, recognize that adcoms have seen it all, do you really think you’re going to make yourself into something that you aren’t?</p>
<p>Just honestly report how you self-identify or don’t report. Simple as that.</p>
<p>p.s. The LAST thing you want to do is to give adcoms the feeling that you’re faking it or pushing something that you’re not.</p>
<p>Just be truthful and click Asian, with Filipino under subgroup. We’re of Chinese ethnic origin, but 3rd generation born in Philippines. Son born in the US, with both parents immigrated from the Philippines. He had the option of claiming either Chinese or Filipino when he applied. He applied as a Filipino. In college, his Filipino club had a Korean who was born and grew up in the Philippines applied as a Filipino.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>These questions are optional, so applicants can also choose not to report.</p>
<p>The box to mark Asian is given with the understanding that Asians are more privileged than other racial groups in the U.S. and/or are overrepresented. It’s more of an honor system than a way to try to nab you. If you don’t feel like this applies to you, then don’t mark it. They set up the system; it’s up to you to buy into it or not.</p>
<p>While there are plenty of people who mark “Hispanic” and have only distant ancestors from Spain or something like that, it works per the system’s rules so I have no issue with it. Put whatever you want as long as you don’t think they’re going to investigate further and decide that you’re lying.</p>
<p>Truthfully , I think it helps, although I don’t have any proof of this statement. Surely, it won’t hurt.</p>
<p>I’m also interested if being Filipino helps. We’re Filipino, but like some Filipinos, have Chinese and Spanish blood. My rising Senior daughter is currently ranked #1 in a fairly affluent SoCal suburban HS and looking to apply to HYPMS and CAL/UCLA.</p>
<p>Am I the only one confused as to why the OP wouldn’t be a Pacific Islander? I get that it is for competition purposes but still…</p>
<p>To 2018dad:
Son applied to similar schools and accepted to USC (4yr merit), Georgetown, NotreDame, Brown, Cornell, etc. Don’t know if being Filipino helped, but surely didn’t hurt him. He ended up choosing Brown. Talking to other parents on campus, who also has other kids in Princeton, Harvard etc, they all said that Filipinos are not that numerous in the Ivy campuses. Hope this helps.</p>
<p>From what I’ve gathered, Filipinos have a very small population among top schools, if any at all. Besides Yale and Stanford, I’ve yet to see a top school with its own Filipino club. I talked to Yale and Rice alumni and asked how many Filipinos there were and both of them said a pretty insignificant amount.</p>
<p>On the Common App, there is a box where you could check “Filipino” under Asian. </p>
<p>As to the advantages, I sure as hell didn’t get any as far as I know. I have a Hispanic last name yet I’m full Filipino, so any implications of a slimmer of Hispanic ethnic origins should’ve already been noticed by the adcoms. I, a Filipino in the top 10% and 33 ACT, got rejected from Rice while my friend who’s only half Hispanic and no other hooks got in with an SAT score in the 1800s and he wasn’t even in the top 10%. </p>
<p>Whatever advantages there should be in being Filipino I have yet to see. I saw one thread a few years ago that Stanford treated Filipinos as URMs, but I’m not sure if that’s true. </p>
<p>According to my personal observations, Filipinos typically aren’t as academically inclined as Chinese, Indians, Koreans, etc. I’m arguably the highest-ranked Filipino in my high school in my grade, and I’m BARELY at the top 10%. My Filipino friends and relatives don’t aim for the top schools and the vast majority end up going to either Univ. of Houston, TAMU, or UT. There are only three top-school Filipinos I know: one’s going to ND, one got recruited as a track athlete to Yale, and one got into Rice ED this year with an 1800 SAT (granted she was valedictorian, which testifies to my suspicion of no advantage of being a Filipino).</p>
<p>In no way am I saying that my circle of friends and family is representative of all Filipinos. They aren’t as disadvantaged economically as Hispanics, AA’s, etc. But as far as I know, we’re not exactly Chinese/Indian/Korean material, either. I don’t know about other Filipinos, but academics just aren’t as stressed in our households as other Asians and there is almost no push to strive for the ivies or top colleges.</p>