<p>Durran, your right in there being a big different between accept and reject, but the thing the line that separates the two is really thin. I would be a fool to not agree with URM's having better chances, but I would be a fool to agree that being a URM with mediocre stats means acceptance to any college since there are mean URM's with stats that equal or exceed their white/asian counterparts and are rejected.</p>
<p>My friend really wanted to go to princeton, and she had everything needed and much more to get in (amazing SAT I, SAT II, val, absurd courseload, awards, insane amounts of EC's, etc) but was rejected, which isn't too surprising. My other friend got in with good stats, but if I were to put it on a number scale what his stats were to hers, then it would be about 80%. He is a URM, but I think what kept her out was the fact that she did many of her EC's, or it seemed that way, just to get into college; the URM, however, did what was important to him and did not place too much emphasis on getting into a good college. He focused on bettering himself, and that, I feel, is a significant difference that was obvious in his app.</p>
<p>I could be wrong, but I honestly think that the reason many amazing applicants get rejected (I have several friends) is because they do most everything to get into a good college, whereas those "lesser" applicants did only what they cared about and wanted to go to a good college. An applicant needs to explain the importance behind his EC's, courseload, etc to show that it wasn't done solely for admittance--there must be passion and good reason.</p>