<p>ok if im applying to a school that's over 25% asian, it's better to not say i'm asian, right?</p>
<p>Colleges don't look at the box you check. That part of the application goes to the people who gather statistics and it is never seen by the people who decide if you where accepted or not.</p>
<p>That being said, I couldn't bring myself to check the white box on the application. All the schools I applied to are very white already. And even though I look very white, I have at least 3 races in my blood.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Colleges don't look at the box you check. That part of the application goes to the people who gather statistics and it is never seen by the people who decide if you where accepted or not.
[/quote]
Are you saying colleges admissions people never see your race when making a decision? There's no way that's true.
[quote]
ok if im applying to a school that's over 25% asian, it's better to not say i'm asian, right?
[/quote]
Just write your race in. If your name or ECs give it away, they won't be confused if you don't report. Besides, I seriously doubt somebody would admit an unreported person over an Asian given the exact same credentials. Only the people who don't benefit from AA would go unreported anyways. Your ethnicity is the last thing you should worry about; there's nothing you can do so just let it be.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Are you saying colleges admissions people never see your race when making a decision? There's no way that's true.
[/quote]
I think it is true, at least for some colleges. I can't find any source to back it up right now though.</p>
<p>The college I go to says they do affirmative action, but there are only about 10 black kids in the whole school. So I doubt it.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I think it is true, at least for some colleges. I can't find any source to back it up right now though.
[/quote]
Perhaps at some colleges such as ones that forbid themselves or are legally forbidden from practicing AA, but the vast majority of colleges mentioned on this site use AA. Look up some colleges on collegeboard.. most of them will say they consider race.
[quote]
The college I go to says they do affirmative action, but there are only about 10 black kids in the whole school. So I doubt it.
[/quote]
Just because they do it doesn't be the number of black students would be high. Rather, it's because of the relatively low numbers that they do it in the first place. I didn't get this off a ranking or something just looked it up randomly: Cornell-6%, Northwestern-6%, Chicago-6%, Yale-8%, Stanford-8%...</p>
<p>
[quote]
ok if im applying to a school that's over 25% asian, it's better to not say i'm asian, right?
[/quote]
or perhaps show the colleges that you're different than them...</p>
<p>just curious, do you have an Asian sounding last name? if that's the case, i remember reading an article about kids who checked the "Other" box and how colleges would just look at their name and other information to try to figure out the applicant's ethnicity.</p>
<p>MODERATOR'S NOTE TO "Question about race" THREAD: </p>
<p>As usual, there are very short intervals between each new formation of a thread on this issue. The thread will be merged, with redirect, into the existing FAQ thread on the subject of ethnic self-identification on college applications.</p>
<p>Here are some figures that need to be considered before speculating about these issues, namely the percentages of students reported as "race unknown" in federal reporting by various colleges, both at the kind of colleges we often talk about on CC and at other colleges. </p>
<p>(22 percent at Case Western) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Case Western Reserve University - Case - At a Glance </p>
<p>(21 percent at Cornell) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Cornell University - At a Glance </p>
<p>(21 percent at William and Mary) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - College of William and Mary - CWM - At a Glance </p>
<p>(21 percent at Brandeis) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Brandeis University - At a Glance </p>
<p>(20 percent at Amherst College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Amherst College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(18 percent at Princeton) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Princeton University - At a Glance </p>
<p>(18 percent at Reed College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Reed College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(16 percent at Chicago) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - University of Chicago - Chicago - At a Glance </p>
<p>(15 percent at Penn) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - University of Pennsylvania - Penn - At a Glance </p>
<p>(14 percent at Pomona) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Pomona College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(13 percent at Harvard) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Harvard College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(13 percent at Brown) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Brown University - Brown - At a Glance </p>
<p>(13 percent at Vanderbilt) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Vanderbilt University - Vandy - At a Glance </p>
<p>(12 percent at Carnegie Mellon) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Carnegie Mellon University - At a Glance </p>
<p>(11 percent at Yale) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Yale University - At a Glance </p>
<p>(11 percent at Columbia) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Columbia University - Columbia - At a Glance </p>
<p>(10 percent at NYU) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - New York University - NYU - At a Glance </p>
<p>(10 percent at Agnes Scott) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Agnes Scott College - ASC - At a Glance </p>
<p>(9 percent at Whitman) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Whitman College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(8 percent at Washington U in St. Louis) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Washington University in St. Louis - Washington U. - At a Glance </p>
<p>(7 percent at Berkeley) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - University of California: Berkeley - Cal - At a Glance </p>
<p>(6 percent at MIT) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT - At a Glance </p>
<p>(6 percent at Virginia) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - University of Virginia - UVA - At a Glance </p>
<p>And here are some other colleges: </p>
<p>(59 percent at Savannah College of Art and Design) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Savannah College of Art and Design - SCAD - At a Glance </p>
<p>(35 percent at Metropolitan Community College: Penn Valley) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Metropolitan Community College: Penn Valley - At a Glance </p>
<p>(28 percent at Rhode Island School of Design) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Rhode Island School of Design - RISD - At a Glance </p>
<p>(27 percent at Champlain College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Champlain College - CC - At a Glance </p>
<p>(26 percent at George Mason) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - George Mason University - Mason - At a Glance </p>
<p>(24 percent at Lansing Community College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Lansing Community College - LCC - At a Glance </p>
<p>(23 percent at Hartwick College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Hartwick College - The Wick - At a Glance </p>
<p>(21 percent at Lynn University) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Lynn University - LU - At a Glance </p>
<p>(20 percent at SUNY Stony Brook) </p>
<p>(20 percent at New York School of Interior Design) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - New York School of Interior Design - NYSID - At a Glance </p>
<p>(19 percent at Eugene Lang College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts - Lang - At a Glance </p>
<p>(18 percent at SUNY Albany) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - State University of New York at Albany - UAlbany - At a Glance </p>
<p>(18 percent at Fashion Institute of Technology) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Fashion Institute of Technology - FIT - At a Glance </p>
<p>(17 percent at Northeastern) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Northeastern University - NU - At a Glance </p>
<p>(17 percent at Whittier College) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Whittier College - At a Glance </p>
<p>(13 percent at Tuskegee) </p>
<p>College</a> Search - Tuskegee University - TU - At a Glance</p>
<p>
[quote]
So holistic is OK with you as long as it's only a little bit holistic?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Are you telling me that race is, in fact, a key factor in admissions?</p>
<p>If race truly isn't that big of a deal, as its proponents assert, then its removal doesn't significantly affect the holistic quality of holistic admissions.</p>
<p>Common Application definition of "holistic" admission process (which is a prerequisite for joining the Common Application club): </p>
<p>
<p>1. Offer undergraduate degrees; 2. Are nonprofit institutions; 3. Are members in good standing of the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) and in full compliance with its Statement of Principles of Good Practice (SPGP); 4. Are accredited by a regional accrediting association; 5. Consider subjective criteria in the admission process, including requiring ALL the following: 1. An untimed essay of at least 250 words or an untimed graded paper; 2. A recommendation form from a school-based counselor and/or teacher that allows the recommender to make substantive written comments on the form or in an attached letter; 3. Information allowing you to select a diverse student body.
</p>
<p>
[quote]
Are you telling me that race is, in fact, a key factor in admissions?</p>
<p>If race truly isn't that big of a deal, as its proponents assert, then its removal doesn't significantly affect the holistic quality of holistic admissions.
[/quote]
Considering race and gender is the only practical way that colleges can create an adequately racially diverse and gender balanced student body.</p>
<p>Once again, tokenadult provides important information that is helpful to the discussion.</p>
<p>The wording does not specify that race MUST be considered. It says that "Information allowing you to select a diverse student body" is required. Extracurriculars, in my opinion, allow for the selection of a diverse student body while remaining race-blind.</p>
<p>So as long as there is an essay, a recommendation, and "Information allowing you to select a diverse student body," a race-blind system is NO LESS holistic than a race-based system.</p>
<p>I hope that the supporters of racial preferences finally stop using the "no race? must be numbers only" straw man.</p>
<p>"a race-blind system is NO LESS holistic than a race-based system"</p>
<p>This leaves out the middle ground of "race considered" in a system where many factors are weighed.</p>
<p>
[quote]
"Information allowing you to select a diverse student body"
[/quote]
That's pretty much code for consider race and gender.</p>
<p>There should be a "gender unknown" category as well</p>
<p>
[quote]
This leaves out the middle ground of "race considered" in a system where many factors are weighed.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>If race is not considered, the system is race-blind. Since we're focusing on the variable 'race,' if race is considered, then the system is race-based.</p>
<p>
[quote]
That's pretty much code for consider race and gender.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>If it doesn't say that, then there is no requirement to consider either race or gender. Only "Information allowing you to select a diverse student body."</p>
<p>So. </p>
<p>Colleges and their students find racial diversity important. AA is currently the best way to achieve it. You can't solve a race-based problem without a race-based solution. Especially when the population you are dealing with is in the minority of college applicants.</p>
<p>
[quote]
You can't solve a race-based problem without a race-based solution.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Do you have any historical or international comparative evidence for this factual assertion?</p>
<p>
[quote]
Do you have any historical or international comparative evidence for this factual assertion?
[/quote]
There is no way to prove or disprove that, so let's not even go down that path.</p>
<p>Also, for once, when we debate whether or not Affirmative Action should exist can we at least stick to the modern day argument for it? The debate nowadays should be about whether or not seeking racially diverse, gender balanced, geographically diverse, etc. student bodies should be considered a social good.</p>
<p>
[quote]
If race is not considered, the system is race-blind. Since we're focusing on the variable 'race,' if race is considered, then the system is race-based.
[/quote]
Race-based sounds like a quota system where race is the only consideration. Race-blind sounds like gender-blind, wealth-blind, talent-blind, athletic-blind, SAT-blind, etc. We could eliminate all criteria and admit by lottery!</p>