<p>To begin, I'm a freshman at the University of Arkansas and plan on attending a top-tier law school after I graduate. As of now, it looks as if I'll still have a 4.0 after this semester. I've taken 18 hours (6 classes) each semester, including 4 upper-level courses, something not many freshmen here are able to do. I still have to take quite a few survey courses in order to graduate, and I've already been exposed to some of the most difficult classes that the University offers in my fields of study, so I anticipate having kept my 4.0 or something close to it by the end of my junior year. </p>
<p>I'm the whitest guy you could ever meet, but I'm also a card-carrying Cherokee (3/64, to be exact). I've done some class profile and demographics searching lately, and I've found that some top law schools have not a single Native American enrolled. Would this be a distinct advantage for me as long as my numbers are above the schools' medians?Should I check the Native American box on the application as long as I've got the identification card to back it up? I was deferred and then rejected from Yale UG last year with decent numbers (33/2260) and great rec's/extracurriculars, but I suppose the URM effect could be different with a law school's much smaller class size. On an unrelated note, I've also accumulated some bizarre honors (I'm ranked 6th in the world in speed drumming, for example). Is it worth the resume space to list unorthodox but unique achievements, as well?</p>
<p>This is an advantage. Your numbers do not have to be above a school's median. As long as you have the card, check the box; I'd also look into a couple things to do in undergrad if you can. I'm not sure what happened with Yale. And yes, those are worth the space on the resume.</p>
<p>URM status continues to be meaningful throughout educational stages.</p>
<p>Haha 3/64. And I thought I was taking advantage by saying I was hispanic just because my dad is from Argentina. But seriously thought, I don't think it can hurt. Just like you, I am the whitest guy you will ever meet, Jewish, blue eyes, and because my polish greatgrandparents moved to Argentina for 2 generations, I get to check off hispanic. Pretty sweet deal if it actually helps out.</p>
<p>Yes, check the box. Native Americans are very underrepresented and your card will be extremely useful (Native Americans are the only minority group asked for identification on applications). </p>
<p>I am 1/4 Native American but I have no identification because my mother was adopted by a white family. Because I do not have a card like you, I feel extra pressure to justify my minority status in my diversity statement. Your personal/diversity statements are something for you to think about as well. Law schools will want to hear how minority status gives you a different perspective from other applicants.</p>
<p>Yeah, I think I will also use my personal statement to speak of my diverse perspectives as a result of my semi-hispanic upbringing. However, I have one little grade issue (a terrible freshman year due to financial issues) that I want to make sure that I explain in my application. I'm sure that it will be self-explanatory given my nearly 3.9 GPA over the next three years after, but do they let you attach on an extra addendum to just add a quick paragraph on an issue such as the one mentioned above?</p>
<p>I think an addendum is better for explanations like that. Use your statements to really show who you are.</p>
<p>Also, if your numbers are below a school's median, I have noticed acceptances are hit or miss in the T14 for minorities. I noticed this after looking at law school numbers for a few cycles. A white applicant might include a few reach schools, but a minority applicant should include many more because he/she has a much better chance of being accepted. Sometimes one minority is rejected from Cornell, for example, but accepted to Duke. Then another minority will have the exact opposite results for no apparent reason.</p>
<p>What worries me with regards to Native American applications is that they seem even more unpredictable than other minority groups. Some Native Americans will be accepted to almost all the T14s while others get into a few or none. This makes me wonder if they weed out those who are not sufficiently Native American (i.e.- 3/64 or no id card at all). I may be thinking about it too much but it worries me.</p>
<p>Note that you have at least 1/4 Native American ancestry to qualify for aid under BIA guidelines.</p>
<p>I doubt that 3/64 is a sufficient percentage in "the whitest guy you could ever meet" will move an admissions committee to grant you URM status. </p>
<p>Frankly, most of us white Americans who have ancestors who arrived in North American before 1800 have some Native American ancestry. I know that I do.</p>
<p>I was a child when my parents applied for a membership card on my behalf, but I do know that it's a Blue Card/Citizenship Card (indicative of Cherokee Nation Tribal Membership) and not a White Card (Certificate of Degree of Indian Blood issued by the Bureau of Indian Affairs). I believe the blood percentage threshold for obtaining a Blue Card is 1/64, so even my children should be able to receive them one day. (See Cherokee.org</a> | Registration | Tribal registration Frequently Asked Question - FAQ's)</p>
<p>My brother possesses the same card and percentage of Cherokee blood as I do, and Yale accepted his documentation and lists him as a Native American in their class profile. He's a senior there now. I'm almost positive that any University would have to grant us URM status if we choose to not to check the Caucasian box.</p>
<p>I'm aiming to be admitted into a top law school on my own merits, though. I'd like for my grades, scores, achievements, and interests to speak for themselves without having to guilt a school into dragging its median down. One of the main reasons I started this thread, though, was that I noticed that some schools have not a single Native American represented... is this due primarily to a lack of qualified applicants or simply a lack of applicants?</p>
<p>Unlike undergrad where you simply check the box, many law schools will want you to "show your color." </p>
<p>From the LSAC</p>
<p>
[quote]
Law schools consider your ethnic or racial status to be whatever you indicate on your LSAT registration forms. Your minority status alone is not a guarantee of admission, but it helps admission committees form a more complete picture of who you are. *They are interested in how your minority status has affected your life, including whatever disadvantages you may have overcome. *</p>
<p>What part should ethnicity play in my personal statement?</p>
<p>Many law school applicants mistakenly assume that the school to which they are applying only cares about ethnicity as a way of fulfilling an unofficial quota of ethnic minorities. This is not the case: **Most law schools are genuinely interested in the overall diversity of their student body—but you must show how your ethnicity will make you a better law student and ultimately a better attorney. It is not enough to simply state your ethnicity or even to describe your personal history as it has been affected by your ethnicity. **A key strategy is to do thorough research on every law school to which you are applying and determine the diversity goals of each school. Structure your personal statement with a purpose and with these goals in mind. </p>
<p>Remember that diversity is broader than ethnicity, and ethnicity is not synonymous with adversity. Do not assume that your ethnicity is the only way in which you can add to the diversity of the student body; consider your entire life experience. Also, do not assume that ethnicity must be broached in stories of hardships and misfortune. However you convey it, you are well-advised to be sincere in relaying your authentic story. Anything less will come across as contrived to the reader and will not be to your benefit.</p>
<p>I think it is shameful for people to use something they do not affiliate with in any way, shape or form to gain an advantage. You, yourself said you were "the whitest guy you could ever meet" so to check that box would be shameful if you are not going to use your law degree in the service of Native Americans. I would say the same for the Argentinian as well. People put themselves on the line and died to create opportunities for underrepresented and first generation students and to take advantage of that is despicable. I wonder what kind of lawyer you would be if you can morally justify doing something like that on a "technicality." That being said, it is not just a race issue, if you are a working class white student or a first generation college student then by all means discuss that, but if you have nothing to do with the Cherokee other than that card, it is hollow.</p>
<p>I agree with UCLA, PhD by the way. If you aren't actually URM or disadvantaged in any way you should not take advantage of the system. I discussed this in another thread so I won't bother reposting.</p>
<p>I don't know if I agree that people who are part URM shouldn't check the box...I mean, would you tell someone who had the money that they shouldn't take a Powerscore class because there are people who can't afford it, or tell a legacy not to apply to Harvard because there are people who deserve a spot more? You can dislike the system law schools use to choose admissions (affirmative action, great reliance on LSAT scores), but since it exists, why not try to capitalize on it?</p>
<p>Obviously, you shouldn't lie and claim you're a URM when you're not, but I don't know if I see a big problem with checking two or more boxes if you're of mixed ethnicity. </p>
<p>Also, why is it "shameful if you are not going to use your law degree in the service of Native Americans"? Would it be acceptable for someone who's 3/64 to check the box if he WERE going to do Indian law? What if someone's not a minority at all, but plans to work for the NAACP Legal Defense fund--can they check the box? If a man wants to work for reproductive rights, can he check off that he's female? And would it be "shameful" for someone who's 100%, or a large fraction, URM to check the box if she planned to work for a large corporate law firm? I could imagine they could do a lot for their families, communities, etc. with the prestige and high salary such a job entails.</p>
<p>I completely agree that it would be at least somewhat wrong for someone to take advantage of a part of their heritage that they identify nothing with. I think my earlier post was a bit misleading. I grew up mostly around my father's family, who all came to NY from Argentina. I am quite connected to this culture. I just do not have the appearance of a hispanic, as is the case with many hispanics of European decent. I have put considerable time into working for the advancement of minority students in educational and employment settings. I'm actually an executive chairman in a club called the National Society of Minorities in Hospitality. I think I have paid my dues to be able to rightfully check that URM box.</p>
<p>Yeah, I can't honestly see how being 3/64 of anything would qualify you to identify with that group. 3/64 means that three of your great great great great grandparents were native american. How can one possibly identify with such a distant connection? I mean, these are people that existed approximately around the earlier half of the 1800's. Sure, if the technical rule stated that 1/64 qualifies you, then by all means check it off, but I don't see that really qualifying in any sense.</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s true. For example, I’m pretty sure that my great great great great grandmother’s cousin’s neighbor was probably Hispanic or something (he might have been from Brazil, or possibly Croatia – definitely somewhere in the Caribbean). That automatically makes me Puerto Rican and I’m pulling down scholarships because of that.</p>