<p>I'm an Asian female living on the East Coast. I attend a competitive public magnet (ranked "Public Elite" by Newsweek) and maintain fairly solid grades (I did have a slip-up in sophomore year, however -- a C+ in Honors Trig/Math Analysis; I know, ouch. Other than that, I've been getting mostly As and some B+s). My GPA is probably about 3.8-ish unweighted, and I'm taking all Honors and AP-level courses.</p>
<p>Here's the thing: I am a lousy test-taker. I got in the low 2100s on my first go at the SAT in March of junior year, and when I retook in May, my score plummeted 90 points. I'm hoping to redeem myself in October with the ACT, for which I've been doing practice tests. It seems more straightforward than the SAT. My SAT Subject Test scores aren't anything to brag about, either. And the Bs I mentioned above? They're mainly in math and science courses (although I did get an A in AP Bio! Haha, felt like I had to add that).</p>
<p>I also gave up the piano after ten years right before entering 9th grade. I definitely haven't done any major research or entered into any prestigious competitions. I hold a few leadership positions and have won only a couple awards. I'm not involved in too many clubs/ECs, but I have a couple ECs (not at all space-fillers) to which I'm very dedicated. I play a Varsity sport that takes up a lot of my time, too (I've lettered and gotten MVP).</p>
<p>I'm very interested in computers, graphic design, photography, and psychology and hope to major in one or two of those fields in college.</p>
<p>I've heard that Asians are held to a higher standard because so many tend to excel on standardized tests and the like. So my question is, would I be at a disadvantage at top schools because I "don't make the cut" in that regard, or would my "un-Asian" traits be looked over because I'm different?</p>
<p>A vague and stupid question, but I'm just worried. Any advice/suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!</p>
<p>Well, to tell you the truth. Being on CC I've been brain washed(yes, brain washed) into thinking that Asians are ORMs. Meaning they have to step up to the plate if they want to be admitted into top schools. Very sad because yeah, the whole Asians being perceived as highly intellegent is a stereotype because not all are.</p>
<p>2100 on the first try? Thats better than me. LOL. </p>
<p>your question really isn't stupid. Just do the best you can && if you're applying ED, show your interest in teh school heavily. But don't do some stupid S*** liek suck up or call them every day. Blah!</p>
<p>I also went to a public elite high school. Your SAT score is fine. I think you could probably get into Duke and some top liberal arts colleges at least. The ivies would be a reach, although you might as well apply. I knew some pretty smart (Asian) guys who got some B's (maybe 4 or 5), and they ended up not getting into Rice. They were good students but not academic stars. So Rice may be a slight reach for you.</p>
<p>I'd say you're in decent shape overall though.</p>
<p>Duke is a reach. More so than Rice is. You will need stronger EC's to get into either of those. Also, you need to stand out more in some particular area to gain acceptance to those institutions. Right now, not being a stereotypical asian isn't realllly helping you that much. Good luck :)</p>
<p>how are you not a stereotypical asian? your grades, sats, exc are all at par or higher. You've obviously been brain washed into believing a 4.0 and 2250 is an asian person's "bench mark". </p>
<p>The fact you are asian does not HURT you, it simply does not help you. Asians are not minorities anymore so they do not get that extra push a URM would recieve. You are at a disadvantage for the top 15 schools because your stats overall are not good enough, and it has nothing to do with your race. You just don't have the stats and whether you were white or indian or even a URM, you would have a tough time getting into the top schools because there are so many URM's who do have excellent stats now. </p>
<p>Boost your sat scores and your EXC and make sure you write great essays that show colleges who you are and what you can bring to their institution. The reality is yeah, you will struggle to get into the top top schools and you'll need to boost your stats in order to compete better and have a higher chance to get in. So my advice is sure apply to Duke and another top 15 school, bu then apply to like 4 schools ranked in the 20's (except the LA and Cal, if you're OOS its ridiculous) and then apply to a few safeties. With luck and wiht someone who appreicates your app you may get into a top 15 school.</p>
<p>I also went to a public elite. I had nearly the same stats at you--my SATs were a bit higher, my GPA was a couple tenths lower. I am Asian. I did fine and got into some pretty selective colleges.</p>
<p>I think it'll be to your advantage to have an upward trend--even though my C+ hiccup was during junior year, my GPA that year was the highest it'd been. And my senior year GPA was higher.</p>
<p>If you're really worried about that C+, address it in that part of the CommonApp that asks you to say whatever you want that they haven't asked. That's what I did, and it turned out fine. :)</p>
<p>And work on your essays--I'd like to think that they helped a lot in getting me into college.</p>
<p>you being asian won't hurt you in your situation. </p>
<p>STEREOTYPICAL asians are over-represented and have to really step up to the plate. As you're not a stereotypical asian you don't have to worry about that working against you...</p>
<p>well, duke is somewhat stats-driven, but you have decent stats and you had good grades from a public elite--that'll help. If you went to a normal public, I wouldn't be as positive about your prospects.</p>
<p>I didn't apply to Duke or Rice, but it seemed like Rice was a little harder to get into from my friends' results. That could be because rice offers very generous merit aid for national merit scholars, and so there was a lot of top people from my school applying to Rice and crowding others out.</p>
<p>Honestly, it makes me laugh a little to think that the only way for an Asian applicant to avoid being labeled as an ORM or a stereotypical Asian is to score lower on the SATs and quit playing the piano.</p>
<p>Being an Asian American will make it harder for you to make it into the top 15, but you're going to have to come up with another way to stand out because being a bad test-taker like you mentioned doesn't scream "I set myself apart from my ethnicity by being not score-driven." Objectively speaking, you're still going to be at a disadvantage against a white applicant who scored a 2100 on the SATs. It comes down to the build-up of the student body.</p>
<p>I have a hard time believing those "un-Asian" traits would actually work to your advantage unless you make it explicitly known that you intentionally scored lower on the SATs to prove a point or if top schools selected their students solely on the basis of "diversity in academic performance" in relation to race.</p>
<p>Don't take this the wrong way. You began 7 straight sentences with "I .....". Try varying your sentence structure. Hopefully your college essay will not look like that.</p>
<p>"I also went to a public elite high school. Your SAT score is fine. I think you could probably get into Duke and some top liberal arts colleges at least."</p>
<p>Errrr. Not based on what she's telling us. Do you know what you're talking about? With competition for TOP schools being as insane as it is, the OP doesn't seem to have great chances for these schools - the thing one has to realize is the vast amount of opportunities at other great schools that have a lot going for them, if not an amazing "ranking"</p>
<p>I agree. Unless you are incredibly involved in an activity that is typically "un-Asian," I don't think simply being a bad test-taker will give you an edge over the so-called "textureless math grind." It might be hard to believe, but there are plenty of low-scoring Asians.</p>
<p>You... you... you're so like me. Varsity sports, no research, quit piano right before 9th grade, a C+ in sophomore year, albeit mine was in French, As to B+s in all other classes. and I'd TOTALLY consider myself a stereotypical asian, minus the glasses.</p>
<p>Whether you consider yourself stereotypical or not though, colleges aren't looking for traits that will make you similar to everyone else anyway. They're looking for a person with qualities that will distinguish them at the college. So your un-asian-ness doesn't hurt at all. On the other hand, your stats in general just aren't for Ivy-caliber schools.</p>
STEREOTYPICAL asians are over-represented and have to really step up to the plate. As you're not a stereotypical asian you don't have to worry about that working against you...
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I think I must be missing something because I dont get this statement. How does not having as good scores as most asians be an advantage? That only makes you "unique" in the sense that you are of the lower range of the asian applicant pool and hence lower your chances at admissions.</p>