On the common app in particular, it asks you to provide your tribal ID number to prove you are a part of a federally recognized Native American tribe. If one is associated with a tribe, say the Waxhaw (a non federally-recognized tribe) how does one prove their affiliation to colleges? Will they be asked to prove it?
That is a good question to take up with the admissions office themselves. Don’t be surprised if each institution requires something differenct.
If it is not federally recognized, it may not matter. You can fill it in under ‘other information’ but it may not get you a boost in admissions.
I’m not trying to boost admissions; I just don’t want to be unable to prove any information that I submit via the common application.
Colleges tend to report ethnicity in their stats for each admitted class. The majority of that information is based on self-reported stuff right off the application. And those questions are entirely optional anyway.
OP, while there may be special reasons for disclosing membership in a federally-registered tribe (some colleges and uni’s, for instance, might have special funds or admissions policies set aside for those applicants), it doesn’t appear to be required that you provide such in order to check the Native American/Native Alaskan box. Simply do your best to identify your heritage as requested - or ignore it altogether. Your choice. The large majority of applicants can’t “prove” any particular ethnic heritage and it would have to be a pretty fraudulent situation for a school to act. Be honest, and you won’t have a thing to worry about.
@Potato42 When my daughter was applying for college, some of the schools did ask for proof by requesting a copy of her Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood (CDIB) and her tribal enrollment card, both of which she provided. However, if yours isn’t one of the 573 federally recognized tribes, then there is no way provide that since you can’t give them something that you don’t have. If you are truly concerned, then you can call each school and ask if they would require anything.
In the case of my daughter’s university, there are about 100 students, undergraduate and graduate, who claim Native ethnicity, and about 26 who have CDIBs and tribal enrollment. I would be surprised if the school had asked those 100 to offer proof of their ethnicity.
@NorthLeftCoast
I’m curious if your daughter checked only the Native American box on the demographics portion of the Common App or did she select Native American AND another race? My son is 1/8 Native American and has his CDIB. Athough he identifies as Native American he feels it’s more accurate to select both Native American and White. I am wondering if that decision Is wise.
We checked both White and Native for my son. He spoke with his admissions counselor at two of the schools as his tribe’s enrollment is currently closed, but the tribe considers his father’s enrollment number to be our son’s number until he is 18. They can’t enroll until 18 any ways even if enrollment were open and my son is 17.
The admissions counselors didn’t seem to concerned about it. They told us because so many tribal policies are different varying tribe to tribe, they would contact us if they need info and they don’t think they will be.
@IroningBoard Her application cycle was four years ago, but to the best of her memory, as well as mine, she only checked Native American.