Hey all, My first post in CC! As the title states, I am a first-generation-refugee(political) raised by a single parent in a low-income family, but I am an asian male in Bay Area. Will this background be considered a hook and strong enough to break my “Asian Male bubble” ? Thanks in advance!
At schools like Harvard, Stanford, Princeton and Yale, the short answer is no. For those schools, get a 4.0 (or close to it) UW, a 1600 (or close to it), great recommendations, essays, preferably some national level awards or accomplishments, and then the first-gen (and low income, if it’s low enough to put you in Pell grant recipient range) might give you some advantage over an otherwise similarly credentialed upper middle class asian male. But, it certainly isn’t a hook.
Nah, asian male will put you in the “asian male pool”. Maybe write a compelling story and it might help. Sorry bud.
Some schools make a point of giving tips to first generation students. UNC Chapel Hill claims that 20% of its students are first generation. What country are your parents from?
Apply to places you can afford (with whatever financial aid you can get).
Have matches, safeties and reaches.
You get admitted or you don’t.
@HSPYUC Try the Google searches
"first generation" site:edu
or
"first generation" admissions site:edu
These will give colleges that give tips for first generation students: UNC, Chapman, Tufts, MIT, U Chicago, etc.
A hook is a person who will fill an institutional need of the college – it is a reason a college would choose one applicant over other equally qualified applicants. Some examples of hooks include: an applicant being recruited to play quarterback on the football team, an applicant who is the child of a huge donor, an applicant that would bring positive press to the college (ex. Malala, an Olympic gold medalist etc.) Very few people have hooks.
But you do have an interesting backstory and you might try to use it to write a compelling essay.
Also if you look at LACs especially ones that used to be women’s colleges you will likely be considered a plus. It varies from college to college so check the Common Data sets, but for many the admission’s rate for males is much higher than that for women.
Your username leads me to think you might be setting yourself up for possible disappointment.
If you really want to potentially have an advantage, change your user name to SWAPMC, which is an acronym for Swarthmore, Williams, Amherst, Pomona, Middlebury, Carleton. These are some of the most prestigious LACs in the country, and being an Asian male applicant can be helpful.
Hey guys, I understood completely. Having a background like these are sources for writing great essays. And can only be inserted through essays. And Also, I am interested in law and politics, so LACs might be great.
Are you really first-gen, meaning neither of your parents went to college even if it was in Asia? It’s still not a hook but it could be a slight advantage, as others have posted.
Single parent, if divorced, can be an anti-hook for financial aid at many good-financial-aid private schools.
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/2083835-faq-divorced-parents-financial-aid-and-net-price-calculators.html
Conventionally, “hooks” refer to the following:
A. Development: your parents donated a building or some such in exchange for a large admission preference.
B. Relation to important person: your parents are someone the college considers important (e.g. prominent politician or business leader).
C. Recruited athlete: as needed to fill the college’s sports teams, depending on your skill at the sport. Recruited athletes are typically a larger percentage of students at a small college than a large college.
D. Legacy: your parent (or sometimes other relative) is an alumni of the college. Can be a substantial percentage of undergraduates at colleges that consider it.
E. URM: you are considered an underrepresented minority at the college. For you, that would typically mean colleges with <5% Asian undergraduates, or sometimes colleges where men are far below the number of women.
Note that not all colleges consider all of the above. Whether D and E (in terms of race/ethnicity) are considered can be noted in the college’s common data set, section C7.
Since you are in California, note that the UCs do not consider D and E above (and they are large enough that C does not consume that many spots). They also do not require the non-custodial parent finances for student with divorced parents. They also tend to like applicants who overcame obstacles (e.g. low income, first generation to college) to achieve what they did.
Note that, in a college context, “first generation” typically means that your parents are not college graduates (bachelor’s degree in any country, although definitions may vary and may be based on attendance rather than graduation), rather than generation since immigration.
@theloniusmonk @ucbalumnus Yes, neither of my parents went to college even if it was in Asia.
I just realize how powerful CC is!! For me, I am quiet passionate in refugee and immigrant’s policy. I am currently studying Greek hoping to help refugees out there. Also, I have my NPO focusing on refugee’s rights to access educations in my community as well as getting an intern at district attorney. So, if I expand my vision beyond pure facts into something that I am passionate about, idk…
The things you just mentioned, if backed up by your counselor’s LOR, teacher LOR’s, and legitimate ECs are going to be more powerful than just your refugee and first gen status. If you are able to combine ALL of that into a compelling story, you will have a good application. It’s never just one thing at the top colleges.
Re LACs, I’m not sure if you are clear that LACs excel in many of the same things that research U’s excel at. You can study politics, maths, sciences, and yes, even engineering at LACs. LACs that are part of a consortium, such as Pomona and Amherst (though most LACs offer classes at other institutions), offer an even larger range of options. An LAC doesn’t just mean creative writing and anthropology, lol.
The advantage of the LAC is smaller classes from the start, undergrad research opportunities from the start, and profs who are focused more on undergrads than research. You will be instructed by professors rather than TA’s. Many of the top LACs have very dedicated and influential alumni networks. Grads of LACs have high acceptance rates into PhD programs and grad school admissions.
I know that isn’t your question. I just wanted you to be aware that if your story and app is compelling, you could indeed have a distinct advantage at an LAC.