Half Asian child: how to apply to college.

[bogibogi]

First, at a number of elite schools, white students are no longer a majority, although they remain the largest single group. Hardly anyone is upset about that. If you break “white” down into its component parts, the element of “white” that has traditionally conferred prestige – WASPs from mainstream Protestant denominations – was surpassed long ago by both Asians and Jews. I’m sure there are people who are upset about that, but they know better than to say anything out loud.

Can you explain to this non-intellectual the difference between the terms “majority” and “largest single group”? Aren’t they the same thing? And yes, didn’t we establish that “white” is a useless term because it encompasses a host of different races (WASPs, Jews, Middle Easterners), but for the colleges’ purposes, everyone who looks white is categorized as white?

As a matter of fact, I do believe that there was – and maybe there still is, although I think colleges are trying hard to counteract it – effectively some discrimination against Asian applicants, but it’s not racial, it’s cultural.

So when you say cultural, you mean they are making judgements based on some stereotypes of the Asian race (i.e., All work, no play. Regurgitating lectures. Non-experimental. Hyper-competitive and grade-grubbing).

I have poor reading comprehension, so correct me if I am wrong, but what I got out of the rest of the post was:

1. Asians are not considered as individuals.
2. It would be prudent for Asians to downplay their interest in STEM, even if they authentically like it.
3. Asians need to figure out the real admissions criteria and conform to them, while simultaneously disguising that fact.

This is all good to know and I will pass it along.

@panpacific, yes I see many elite institutions expanding their STEM programs:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/04/education/john-paulson-gives-400-million-to-harvard-for-engineering-school.html?_r=0

Since 2007, the engineering school has added undergraduate concentrations in biomedical engineering, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering, as well as a master’s program in computational science and engineering. Course enrollment has increased by nearly 150 percent.

http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2011/03/24/gift-of-50m-allows-for-engineering-expansion/

The gifts support Yale’s engineering program at a time when the education of engineers is important to the nation’s future, University President Richard Levin said in a Thursday press release.

@anomander, I always thought the interviewer had very little say in whether an applicant is accepted. Although in that particular case, he could have had a lot of pull. I do agree that kids who are “perceived” to be more interesting probably do have an edge. In that regard, promoting/marketing yourself as an interesting/unique/superpowered applicant is probably key in getting the results.

[xiggi]

[QUOTE=""]

@anomander, I always thought the interviewer had very little say in whether an applicant is accepted. Although in that particular case, he could have had a lot of pull. I do agree that kids who are "perceived" to be more interesting probably do have an edge. In that regard, promoting/marketing yourself as an interesting/unique/superpowered applicant is probably key in getting the results.<<<

[/QUOTE]

Again, that is a POOR reading of the tea leaves! Leaving your fate in the hands or ears of an interviewer is a grave mistake! The role of interviewers is massively overrated and misrepresented.

Here is the “trick” … the application should stand on its own and should have EVERYTHING presented through essays and LORs. How many essays are penned that amount to sterile and heartless recitals of tales of academic successes? Doctor shadowing? Surviving the boat ride! Travel to the motherland? What are the LORs? More recitals of best in classes that TYPICALLY describe great efforts, superlative work ethics, obsession with excellence, but alas convey images of grinding and uber focus on … grades.

Are there BETTER options? Yes and that starts with understanding that the HS curriculum is merely the foundation of the application but is NOT the story. Think of a beautiful house without landscape and furniture.

Fwiw, a student should NOT struggle with delivering the goods as long as he or she refrained to walk the typical path.

Easier said than done for the many victimized by the wrong … parental guidance in education.

PS By the way, the USNEWS report from a few years ago had a story about an Asian amateur filmmaker. Betcha most ONLY read the tables to compile the prestige list and …missed the important story. After all, the happy kid also wanted to major in drama. The horror!

[Swimkidsdad]

African-American applicants receive the equivalent of 230 extra SAT points (on a 1600-point scale), and being Hispanic is worth an additional 185 SAT points. Other things equal, recruited athletes gain an admission bonus worth 200 points, while the preference for legacy candidates is worth 160 points. Asian-American applicants face a loss equivalent to 50 SAT points.

Espenshade statistical analysis yielded results that are consistent with what is commonly thought to occur during the admission process at Ivy League schools.

Who are the members of this “commonly thought” group?

The following people have made statements which are consistent with Espenshade’s results:

Harvard University Vice President and General Counsel Robert W. Iuliano ’83

Despite recent scrutiny, Harvard has repeatedly defended its use of race as one factor among others in admissions decisions; in a May statement, University Vice President and General Counsel Robert W. Iuliano ’83 said the College’s policies are “fully compliant with the law.”

Harvard Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons ’67

Harvard’s acceptance rate for legacies has hovered around 30 percent—more than four times the regular admission rate—in recent admissions cycles, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons ’67 told The Crimson in an interview this week.

Harvard Director of Admissions Marlyn E. McGrath-Lewis ’70-’73

“The AI does not make decisions for us,” Director of Admissions Marlyn E. McGrath-Lewis ’70-’73 said in an e-mail. “It provides a way to gauge how each Ivy institution does in enrolling ‘representative’ students who are recruited athletes. The league created the AI exactly for that purpose.”