<p>Curiousjane, thank you. I had never thought of the issue like that before (Use of the term “disclosing”).</p>
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<p>I don’t see that. They’re just like their peers in general. some are more mature, some are more confused, being too overly obsessed with the issue or easily swayed by their peers. those are less mature. On average, they’re just like others of their age.</p>
<p>What does “some do that” mean?</p>
<p>I don’t think it’s a hook, and it shouldn’t be, just like being straight is not.</p>
<p>836 views to date. I think you’ve found a hook. GL</p>
<p>Maxwellequations, with flexible essay prompts an applicant might discuss coming out in high school, they might discuss being LDS in a neighborhood of Catholics or like Dan Savages son is likely to do someday, talk about what it was like wanting to play football with your dads when they wanted to have a Lady Gaga & the Indigo Girls festival.</p>
<p>I expect it * is * a hook at some schools. So what?<br>
Schools appear to want a class with some diversity, to not have everyone of the same background.
If you want a school where students look more similar, look at BYU or another school with a strict behavior & dress code.</p>
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If they make virginity a hook, they could perhaps tap the Brits for the system they were using in the early '70s - single women from some countries were checked at Heathrow and those who were certified to be virgins were let in without hassle. This is not the Onion - it really was the policy at one time.</p>
<p>I don’t see how one’s non-heterosexuality would be a hook, unless the particular college felt it did not have enough students who identified that way. How would it even know? I suppose colleges might try to survey their current students. Is there any evidence that non-heterosexual students are less prevalent in college populations than in the general population at large? I doubt it. And if not, why would it be a hook?</p>
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<p>Barrons, that would be GENDER that would help a male get into a school with “too many females” or a girl get into a few tech schools. It has nothing to do with the sexual orientation of the kid at all, merely a gender balancing mechanism admissions uses. I don’t think admissions gives a fig whether a girl is gay or not when she applies to MIT, CalTech, Harvey Mudd, or Rose Hulman. They only care that it is a girl, because then they can claim a more balanced ratio in the class… sexual orientation does not matter to them.</p>
<p>I do not believe it is a hook anywhere in this day and age. Maybe back when hardly anyone was out, but barriers for LGBT students were just starting to crumble, there was a unique factor in an essay about it (a kind of diversity). But being out is so common today that I do not think it matters at all. I bet 1 in 20 kids these days has some “gay indicator” on their application (something in an essay or an EC like Gay-Straight Alliance – yes, I know there are straight kids in GSA as well, political campaigning for gay marriage, etc.) One of my kids is gay, but did nothing to disclose this in her applications. It just didn’t come up as a factor, and I am sure she also considered it none of the ad com’s business anyway.</p>
<p>I can see it now, thousands of kids will be identifying as bisexual/transsexual/lesbian/gay/whatever-the-heck-else on their applications the second universities consider URSs (underrepresented sexuality) a hook. </p>
<p>Would I do it? Nah, I’m not the desperate type.</p>
<p>Race is SELF-identified. What’s to stop students from lying about their race on forms??</p>
<p>I do not, for one second, buy the argument that students would suddenly pretend to be LGBT to get an acceptance any more than they pretend to be hispanic or something. I think it’s a non-argument.</p>
<p>Race is somewhat self-identified. </p>
<p>Students can get in some trouble for lying about race on certain things.</p>
<p>@romani You don’t buy it? Ok. I can’t say wait and watch because this soley depends on the preferences of colleges, but I’m sure there would be a lot more talk on the involvement in the LGBT community. Tht involvement may or may not involve switching teams. ;)</p>
<p>And remember romani, I said thousands. Considering that there are over a million high school seniors, it’s a small percentage.</p>
<p>Nope, sorry, don’t buy it. I don’t buy that kids are going to open themselves up to bullying and backlash from their family for a possible leg up in the admissions process. </p>
<p>How do you prove you lied about race? My name is Irish O’Irish with very pale skin and blue eyes but I’m half Hispanic. Hispanic is very, very easy to lie about but I still see extremely low numbers of Hispanics at universities.</p>
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<p>Maybe that’s because they look Irish?</p>
<p>I’m talking about stats (numbers), not whether or not I physically “see” Hispanic students :rolleyes:</p>
<p>A lot of colleges have a separate category for mixed “race.” I would guess that Hispanics would be heavily represented in such a category.</p>
<p>Intparent, interesting post. Thanks.</p>
<p>I guess the diversity is valued. Perhaps this thread should be called sexual orientation as a hook rather than sexuality.</p>
<p>Hispanic isnt a race, its a cultural grouping.
BTW I do know both Native Americans and African Americans who look paleish with red hair.
My SIL is from Columbia and she considers herself white.</p>
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Claiming that you’re an LBGT or something of the like on a college application is different from “coming out of the closet” in real life. It’s like checking a box on your race. </p>
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Or perhaps students will choose their “Topic of Choice” to be about their “problems” with their sexuality. </p>
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Congratulations, you’ve just provided an example of why “race” is controversial.</p>
<p>There’s a lot of overlap with ethnicity and “race”. I could get very technical with this.</p>