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<p>I chuckle at people who post swift, condescending posts that lack insight. :)</p>
<p>This was an interesting article. You know, I donât have a problem with colleges wanting a diverse student body. Hell, Iâm glad Harvard and Yale arenât composed of mostly Asians. College isnât just about going to classes, itâs about learning socially, and you can learn a lot more when youâre surrounded by a large variety of peoples. But what does **** me off is when people judge me because Iâm Asian, when they belittle my passions and my accomplishments just because Iâm not White and thereâs a certain âmoldâ that I fit into. Screw that. It *<strong><em>es me off when people look at my transcript and say, âOh, those are some good grades. Not Asian good, but pretty good.â Or when they see my SAT scores and automatically assume theyâre high because I took a hundred practice tests. Or when they assume I want to be a doctor. Or when they assume Iâd rather study than hang out. Or when they assume I play computer games. Itâs so damn annoying. And I feel bad for the Asians who truly feel passionate medicine and want to become doctors because they actually care. *</em></strong> it. Iâm gonna do whatever the hell I want to do, and if it happens to fit into the âAsian mold,â then who gives a ****? </p>
<p>Whatever race you are, donât change your passions or beliefs to dodge a stereotype. The more you avoid it, the more people will fixate on it. Do what you love, and if people give you crap about it or deny you entrance to the college of your dreams, so be it. College is just one step on the road, and whatever race you are, if you work hard, you WILL go somewhere good and you WILL make things work eventually.</p>
<p>Damn bÎčtches, stop bumping this thread!</p>
<p>Here is my little story: Iâm not one of those white-washed Asians that canât speak their parentsâ languages and donât eat with chopsticks and stuff, and Iâm not one of those clueless FOBs. But when I was a teenager I kind of went through the same thing as the OP. My high school was basically 99% white and I always felt like if I was white, life would just be a lot easier. And I went through the whole âAsianâ thing- my parents bought me an SAT prep book for my 9th birthday, and I spent my summers as a teenager in SAT prep courses. And I always felt out of place, like I lived in America, but that it wasnât home for me the way it was for white or black people. And when I heard about things such as affirmative action and stuff when I applied for colleges, I felt even worse. And of course everyone knows how crazy Asian parents can be.</p>
<p>But now that I am close to graduating, I love the fact that I am Asian. It makes me stand out, and it gives me a sense of identity and a lot to be proud of. College- especially this past year at my new school- really changed my attitude towards my heritage. I could never imagine nor want to be just âanother white guyâ. Although I think that if I grew up in China or something, I would probably wish I was white. I think being Asian has become a positive thing for me because I never had to deal with all the stereotypes of being an Asian, so I never had to look behind my shoulder and wonder if people were typecasting me because of race. I am a humanities major and played football until I tore my knee apart during spring ball this March. Most of the time I would be the only Asian in my classes or in practice or whatever, and I would always just feel proud representing my culture and heritage. I think the only thing I donât like about my genetics is that I always have the most unpredictable hair days, some days normal some days super spiky some days curly?!?</p>
<p>In the end, I think it is all a matter of self-image. Being Asian is not inherently good, nor is it inherently bad. It is up to you to decide if you want that part of your identity to haunt you or help you.</p>
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<p>So many Asians are better at English than white-Americans.</p>
<p>and to keep along the main topic: Iâm glad Iâm Asian</p>
<p>Iâm glad Iâm white.</p>
<p>Iâm upset I exist.</p>
<p>âTHatâs the kind of person who my comment was addressed to. And as an Asian-American, Iâve heard many of my peers in real life make terrible comments about Asian supremacy based on laughable crap like SAT scores, and itâs disgusting. It bothers me more than white supremacy since my own race is doing it.â</p>
<p>Funny, but most of the racist comments Iâve heard about Asians have all come from whites who believe that Asians are smarter and therefore intellectually superior. As an Asian myself, Iâve often wondered if they were just putting me on in an attempt at flattery or if they really believed that.</p>
<p>I started to read through this thread and got through the first three or four pages. It strikes me that what you are discussing is not a matter of Asian self-hatred or Asian pride but annoyance at the presence of an obstacle beyond your control when it comes to elite college admissions.</p>
<p>Guess what? There are many groups similarly situated. These include extremely qualified white kids from the northeast and California, Jewish kids, and girls, just to name a few. College admissions is not a meritocracy. </p>
<p>I think what annoys me most is the inability or unwillingness to look beyond a very narrow perspective and understand that there are obstacles for many kids in this process, and greater, more far reaching obstacles in life for those without the intelligence, training, family support that you have. So, worst case, you wonât go to Yale. Youâll go to an excellent school where you will enjoy a top flight education and will no doubt distinguish yourself in your time there.</p>
<p>âGuess what? There are many groups similarly situated. These include extremely qualified white kids from the northeast and California, Jewish kids, and girls, just to name a few. College admissions is not a meritocracy.â</p>
<p>Just because the system is unmeritocractic does not mean we should not strive to make it so. This is the equivalent of telling slaves âlife isnât fair, suck it up.â</p>
<p>Equivalent to accepting slavery? Come on, you must realize how ridiculous that sounds.</p>
<p>Colleges are free to accept anyone they choose. Their goal is to build a class, not necessarily of the best and the brightest, but a diverse class filled with athletes, underrepresented minorities, those from different parts of the U.S. and the world, and those who fill particular niches. If there are too many qualified applicants from any one subgroup, there simply arenât going to be enough slots for members of that group. Fairness has nothing to do with it. Itâs not a meritocracy.</p>
<p>The better approach is a shift in perspective. Stop thinking of Harvard and Yale as the pinnacles of higher education. They arenât. The undergraduate education isnât any better than what you will get at another excellent university or LACâmany will argue that itâs quite inferior. The peers, for the reasons I laid out above, range from brilliant to average. Youâll find equivalence at many other schools. Apply to those schools, who will be thrilled to have you, and make the most of the opportunities. If your only complaint is that you want the prestige associated with these few name schools, I have no sympathy at all. Youâve bought into a myth and want to perpetuate it rather than furthering yourself in a meaningful way.</p>
<p>The point I was making above was twofold: (1) the continued chase after particular Ivy League schools is narrow minded and limiting (2) it bugs me when members of any one group canât look beyond their own situation and realize that there are others who have also been adversely affected by college admissions. None of that mattered until it affected you.</p>
<p>Ok, I concede that the slavery analogy is not the most appropriate. However, the point I was making with that analogy still stands. We should not just roll over and accept an unfair system. </p>
<p>âThe point I was making above was twofold: (1) the continued chase after particular Ivy League schools is narrow minded and limiting (2) it bugs me when members of any one group canât look beyond their own situation and realize that there are others who have also been adversely affected by college admissions. None of that mattered until it affected you.â</p>
<p>(1)Sure, the undergraduate education isnât any better at an Ivy than what you get at any other top tier school, but the benefit of the connections you can make at those schools is significant. Additionally, the name recognition of those schools will give their graduates at least some advantage in graduate school admissions and first job applications. And the discrimination against asians isnât exclusive to those schools either. Almost all top tier schools have similar admissions policies. All we want is an opportunity to fairly compete. Nothing more, nothing less. </p>
<p>(2) You second point is just baseless. How do you know that we do not realize that others are also treated unfairly by college admissions? How can you even attribute such a quality to such a large group? Even if we accept your claim to be true, it is just human nature to be fixated on our own problems. Tell me, how many times have you thought about starving Africans this week? month?</p>
<p>You are not getting it. This is not a civil rights matter. There is no entitlement to an Ivy League education. This is not the same as being prevented from voting or working or traveling freely. Itâs not even the same as being prevented from obtaining a college education. Nor is this an anti-Asian matter. The schools in question arenât looking at applications and holding their noses at applications from bright, motivated Asian kids. They are impressed by these kids, they want these kids, they just donât have room for all that apply. Once you truly understand that these few schools are NOT on a mission to admit only bright kids and give up the myth of their superiority-including their prestige-you will stop wasting indignation on a trivial (I know it doesnât feel that way at your age but trust me, it is) issue.</p>
<p>There are other schools with great alum networks. The more you buy into the myth of the Ivies, the harder you make things and the more you miss out on better opportunities. Check out some of the very best LACs. They actually still show some preference for Asians. Use the unfairness to your advantage. </p>
<p>As for being aware of othersâ misfortunes, thatâs exactly what I do and have always done. Not just being aware but actively working to better the situations of others, in part because of the oppression my own ethnic group has endured, in part because I donât accept the premise that itâs human nature only to care about oneâs own group. I come from a background where this is expected and it is ingrained in our culture. Of course thereâs nothing wrong with championing for the rights of your own race and I applaud that. I just have a sense of tunnel vision.</p>
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<p>Methinks youâre not being any better than the few people who happen to post ludicrous comments like that.</p>
<p>You also contradict yourself - by first stating that black students do worse regardless of economic class and then say by saying that the diff. in SAT scores has to w/ cultural values/economic class (I wouldnât be so careless about throwing around the âidiotâ comment).</p>
<p>As for cultural values, I do agree w/ you - thatâs the reason why such a large portion of the black student body at Ivy League colleges comprise of black immigrant students.</p>
<p>And while I do think that there should be programs to help black students from lower socio-economic programs to get into college, I also have problem w/ the fact that black students w/ educated parents and attending good suburban schools getting an âedgeâ simply b/c they happen to be black (should society give a pass to those who donât work as hard to achieve good grades, etc.?).</p>
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<p>Uhh, so what âvarietyâ do Jews (who despite making up only 1.5% of the college age pop. make up nearly 40% of the student body at Ivies such as Yale and Penn) bring?</p>
<p>And as for Asians - the vast majority of Asian-American students at the Ivies and other top universities (aside from Intâl students) tend to be âwhitewashedâ Asians and culturally/socially no different from whites.</p>
<p>The whole âdiversityâ argument is a joke.</p>
<p>The Ivies defend the fact that such a large % of their black student pop. comprises of black immigrant students from Africa or the Caribbean by stating that they are looking for âcultural diversityâ, but yet, at the same time, the Ivies overwhelmingly take Asian-American students who either grew up in white suburbia or established, wealthier Asian enclaves and not Asian students who are more recent arrivals and likely living in Asian âghettosâ (itâs the Asians who are more recent arrivals and/or living in Asian âghettosâ who have much more ties to their cultural heritage).</p>
<p>Basically, they are just using the âdiversityâ argument to justify having such a large % of black immigrant students who tend to have higher scores (and btw, tend to be as serious about academics as many Asian immigrant students) than other black students; while at the same time donât really care about the cultural diversity of Asian students since most high scoring Asian students tend to come from wealthier suburbs (in addition, itâs not like the Ivies are actively seeking Hmong, Laotian, etc. applicants).</p>
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<p>True - but something is amiss when you look at the acceptance rate of Jewish students in comparison to that of Asian students.</p>
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<p>Care to explain how Jews are extraordinarily overrepresented at Ivy League schools - particularly Yale, Penn, Columbia and Harvard?</p>
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<p>The vast majority of Asian-American students attend community college and public universities.</p>
<p>Otoh, a much higher % of Jewish students (in relation to their pop. size) attend the Ivies - maybe you should say something about that.</p>
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<p>Stanford and the UC schools previously had a policy where they artificially kept the Asian student pop. low for which they have apologized for.</p>
<p>And the whole prohibition on AA is not entirely true.</p>
<p>The UC schools have installed programs in order to get more black students (which I have no problems w/) - however, the one group that was hurt by this policy were Asian students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.</p>
<p>If they are going to instill this policy to help black students (many from lower socio-economic backgrounds), then they should do the same for Asian and white students from lower socio-economic backgrounds as well and maybe have less Asian/white students who grew up w/ more economic advantages.</p>
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<p>So why do the Ivies take so many black immigrant students if the goal is to help âAfrican-Americansâ?</p>
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<p>Anyway, to get back to the original topic of this thread - it has everything to do w/ how Asians are stereotyped and in particular, how they are portrayed in the media.</p>
<p>Take for instance the studies which have shown young black children identifying lighter-skinned dolls as being âgoodâ and the darker-skinned dolls as being âbad.â</p>
<p>While the stereotypes are different (and can differ largely within a group - for instance, Asians such as Hmong or Laotian are stereotyped as being gangbangers and not particularly academically inclined), the essence of the problem is the same.</p>
<p>However, one major difference is that such early beliefs in the black community can partially be offset by the images in âblack mediaâ (granted, black media can also hurt and also reinforce many negative stereotypes) and the images of blacks in the âmainstreamâ media whereby Asians donât really have such an alternative here in the States.</p>
<p>A Harvard study showed that black males have the highest self-esteem when it came to their race + gender.</p>
<p>Black females, otoh, donât feel as postively as their male counterparts and that likely has to do w/ how they have been and continued to be portrayed in the media.</p>
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I thought this was how the system worked - people coming from bad school districts (many of whom are black) are given a bump.</p>
<p>^ No, the programs that UCLA and UCB have instilled were to actively recruit more black students.</p>
<p>When the no. of black students rose at UCLA and UCB, the one group that was hurt was low-income Asian students.</p>
<p>I think stereotypes exist for a reason⊠I have Hispanic friends who arenât happy about other Hispanic people supporting the bad stereotype and I have black friends who loathe the black people who support the negative stereotypes. Being full blooded Asian myself, I think that CERTAIN Asians tend to be quite snobby and condescending when it comes to academics, and they ALWAYS have to be the ones who fit into the stereotype mold. As the Asians who DO fit the stereotype and ARE nice, I donât think there is really anything wrong and I guess Iâm just neutral with it because theres nothing really bad about it, except for the fact that they are seen as robots with no social abilities. Iâm not smart, I donât have a high IQ and I donât get the best grades. The only stereotype I support is that Iâm majoring in science, Cell Biology, but Iâm not doing it because my parents forced me to. In fact, my parents let me do whatever I want. Iâm majoring in science because I actually want to be a scientist, eversince I was a little kid and I am not doing it to become rich and get a lot of money. If I wanted to be rich I would be doing bank investment stuff. </p>
<p>Anyways, back to what I was saying about the stereotypes being supported. I have met many Asians who felt like they need to support the stereotypes, being nerdy, getting good test scores and grades, going into medical school, hanging out with only Asians, thinking theyâre the [best], calling others stupid, etc. The funny thing is that some of them were not even students that were hard workers or were smart, and they cheated in school to get some of their good grades and then are going to brag about getting high scores when they cheated; disgusting. Yeah, theyâre the types that drops Organic Chemistry and Physics multiple times if they feel like they are going to get a C; bug you constantly for your tests from classes that you taken which they will take in order to increase their chances of getting a good grade. They beg to get your help and when you ask them for help they ignore you and treat you like a ghost; disgusting-er. </p>
<p>They looked down on me because I didnât act âAsian-enoughâ, which I thought was weird, wasnât going to a prestigous school, didnât have a high GPA and hated me because I wanted to double major in Art. A lot of them were money hungry demons. Yes a lot of them were smart, but ugly at the same time for the same reasons I said about the non-smart ones. A lot were racists against Blacks, Hispanics and even other Asians! Hell, they probably hated anything with an IQ lower than 110! Disgusting-est! </p>
<p>I think Asians should stop pursuing a career because their parents want them to, itâs not doing Asians in general any good, especially the ones who do want to go into these careers. Itâs sad, most of the time itâs their parents that are greedy and money hungry while sometimes itâs both. This type of mentality and stereotypes will stop once people start pursuing their own passion and stop worrying about money. I guess itâs easy for me to say because I have such lenient parents and I feel sorry for the ones who donât. Many Asians are turned down from schools that they should get into based on scores and grades, but Iâm sure the admissions are aware that this type of stuff is going on with many Asian families and that some of them arenât doing it for passion, only for greed and bragging rights. Heck, itâs the reason why most of them who do it to please their parents, arenât passionate about it and viewed as robots.</p>
<p>I am sorry, but this is the plain truth, like it or not. Some people feel the need to support stereotypes because they think itâs what defines a certain group of people, they are supremacists. This is a problem in every race and every ethinic group. I am Asian and happy to be Asian, and I am speaking for all those Asians who have a mind of their own and do what they like, even when they do fit the stereotype, and the ones who donât fit the stereotypes. And yes, I do feel bad for the Asians who actually want to become lawyers, doctors and scientists, like me! 
This is my opinion, agree, disagree, like or dislike I really donât care⊠all I know is that many of my close Asian friends agree with me.</p>
<p>This thread is a joke.</p>
<ol>
<li>Yes, the OP was ridiculous and college officers shouldnât be promoting stereotypes.</li>
<li>Yes, it is a ridiculous generalization to say that all Asians are socially awkward or all about math.</li>
<li>However, it is true that there is a lot more to being a successful person than just your SAT scores or hard work. What makes America and individual students great is imagination. Ideas that change the world are not found in a chemistry textbook. They will not be discovered through hours of perfecting a sport or an instrument. No, most of the time these new innovations in music, best-selling novels, and groundbreaking cultural ideas will be found through a rebellious attitude. I personally find it very odd that Asians dominate the intellectual scene yet still arenât breaking through and leading the nationâs cultural, political, or entertainment fields.</li>
</ol>