Is being a refugee that got here 2.5 years ago and has perfect stats a hook? Is it going to help admissions?
No
By itself, no. It may make for an interesting essay topic which may benefit you in the process.
Each college is free to define what it considers a hook and decide (where allowed by law) how much of a bump (if any) each hook is in the process. In general the major hooks are:
- Recruited athlete
- Underepresented minority
- Child of alum (some may consider grandparents; some may limit to alum of the undergrad school)
- Child of major donor
Some others that may be hooks to some colleges
- Child of a world leader/celebrity
- Celebrity in own right
- First generation in family to attend college
A hook is a person who fills an institutional need of a college - it is a reason why a college would select one individual over similarly qualified applicants. Few people have hooks and if you had one you would know it. A number of examples of hooks are listed above.
You can use your background as a basis for a compelling essay.
The Harvard lawsuit used the acronym “ALDC”: recruited athletes, children of alumni (“legacies”), dean’s interest list and children of faculty and staff. ALDCs make up only about 5 percent of Harvard applicants but 30 percent of admitted students, and have a 45% admit rate.
What about your grandparents? “First generation” means first ever in your family line.
Lol no!
I am first generation then
Since the OP has decided to leave the site, I am closing the thread.