<p>Half and Half, but one half URM, what to do?? </p>
<p>HI, I am half hispanic(central american) and half north african(do not want to disclose countries). What do I fill out on the applications. Do I say hispanic, other, both, or just other? What should I do? I have only filled out other before because it said circle one, and then didn't get scholarship money I would have gotten through National Merit, or SAT, don't remember(I would have qualified for sure because I was commended). Also, I am 50/50 and identify with both and speak both languages. I am in a dilemma because I don't want to give up benefits from circling hispanic, but don't want to leave out other half. What would be the best thing to do. Please help, I have asked a lot of people, and they tell me to just decided, but what would be the most beneficial for me in the college application process?</p>
<p>If I check both hispanic and other, does that mean I would not be classified as a URM and get the benefits associated with that. I mean, I speak spanish fluently and still have family back in the "homeland". So I feel like I deserve the advantage because I actually am hispanic. Not that it's right to have an advantage, but it's there anyway, so I might as well benefit. I know that sounds bad. But if I could only fill one in, what should I do. I mean people who are only 1/4 hispanic fill it and get the benefits, so I feel I rightfully deserve them since I am half, and my mother still even has an accent. I have even lived in the country for several months. Also, if there is a biracial choice(not in commonapp, but is in other apps), should I choose that, and then would I not get the hispanic benefits.
As other poster said, I should be honest, and say both. But I do not want to forgo any benefits. I will say both, I don't want to be dishonest I've decided. But what if I have to chose one. If I chose other, they will have no clue I am hispanic and north african is considered white anyway. So what do I do? Are there any college reps out there that could answer how the ethnicities are counted in cases like mine, or just in general?
That would really help me breath easier, however, I will put both to clarify now, but what if there is just one choice.</p>
<p>Do you speak Spanish at home? Do you have a Hispanic surname? If both are yes, then you should have no qualms about putting down Hispanic. Even if you don't have a Hispanic surname, speaking Spanish in the home is a major factor.</p>
<p>^ What FellowCCViewer said, because that's what I did.
You can either choose "Other" and type in both in the box, OR you can check "Hispanic" and "Other - fill in the African country".</p>
<p>Self-reporting ethnicity is OPTIONAL on the Common Application, which is what many colleges (for example Harvard) use as their main or sole application form. Self-reporting ethnicity is also optional on the Universal Application, which various colleges, including Harvard, also accept. Every college in the United States is required by federal law to track voluntarily self-reported ethnic data on students. The colleges ask for this information, and have to report it to the federal government, but students don't have to report it. Harvard's U-CAN page</p>
<p>shows, based on that federally mandated data tracking, that 15 percent of its students are "race unknown," so evidently quite a few applicants to Harvard decline to self-report their ethnicity and yet are still admitted.</p>
<p>Don't worry about it. Self-report or not as you wish. Recognize that students from a variety of ethnic groups--including whatever one you would claim for yourself--are admitted to each of your favorite colleges each year. On the other hand, admission to some colleges (e.g., Harvard) is just plain competitive, so lots of outstanding students of each ethnic group you can imagine are not admitted each year. Do your best on your application, apply to a safety, and relax. </p>
<p>College admissions offices refer to the U.S. Census bureau definitions for ethnic categories, because they required to report by federal regulations, and you can look the definitions up on the Web. </p>
<p>
<p>Black or African American. A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as "Black, African Am., or Negro," or provide written entries such as African American, Afro American, Kenyan, Nigerian, or Haitian.
<p>Thanks! Another question, if you circle more than one ethinicity, are you no longer put in the pool of "hispanics" or "blacks" for example. Since north african is considered "white" as said above by census bureau, would I be in both the white and hispanic pool, or the biracial pool. Does anyone know exactly what would happen. My main concern is that I am not grouped with the hispanic pool, and then I lose the advantage of being associated with that race(as happened to me when I only put "other" only for Psat(didn't get hispanic scholarship, even though kid at my school who is only 1/4 spanish and doesn't even speak spanish got it). Does anybody know what exactly they do, would I not be considered a URM, even though I am 50% and you only have to be 1/8 to be able to even put it down.(Another scenario for example is someone is half black, half white, but their skin is black, they put down african american. Then should I just put down hispanic since technically the other half is just "white" according to info above)</p>
<p>I am Really confused. I just want to know now how the colleges sort out the ethnicities in cases of more than one race.</p>
<p>I think you need to chill. It's clear that you think you deserve a URM status simply to gain an advantage in admissions. I think you are going about this with the wrong attitude. Just be honest on your application. It's not like they will overlook your half Hispanic ethnicity if you choose both N. African and Hispanic. I don't know how admissions puts them in racial pools (I didn't even know they did this?), but don't worry about it. If you really deserve to get in, then you will. I think honesty is the key here.</p>