Standing Out to Colleges as an Asian-American Student
With a strong application that highlights your well-rounded unique qualities and skills, you can “break the mold” and highlight that you and your passions go beyond the stereotypes.
Applying to schools is undoubtedly a scary process. While the pressures of college applications is felt by everyone, perhaps these pressures are intensified among the Asian American pool of applicants. Schools that are not race-blind for their applicants hold different races and ethnicities to different standards. There are stories of applicants with near perfect statistics and still failing to be admitted to their top schools. A study demonstrated that on the SAT, Asian Americans needed to score 300 points higher to have the same probability of acceptance. With Asian Americans making up approximately 20% of the Ivy League undergraduate population for example, there is a strong desire to secure a spot in this percentage.
The competitive nature of college admissions, especially at the nation’s top universities, is extremely high for this demographic. If you are an Asian American vying to attend these selective colleges, these questions may be running through your mind: How do I get into these schools? What should I write my essays about? What part of the process should I focus on? How do I stand out among other Asian American applicants? Having experienced this as well as having close ones also experience the same process, I have some tips that will help guide Asian American students who may be feeling lost.
Of course admissions officers take a holistic approach in considering applicants. In other words, they look carefully at SAT/ACT scores, academic course load and grades, extracurriculars, and written essays. There are certain stereotypes and associations people have developed in regards to Asian Americans. The truth is that other applicants have stellar statistics and admissions offices even expect certain values, so matching up to these high scores is important. For standardized tests, the best results come with adequate preparation prior to the exam with extensive timed practice.
However, this post will focus on the aspects of the application that are highly personalized. Parts, such as essays and extracurriculars, can be very individualized, and thus are ultimately the areas that will make a difference in helping one stand out among other applicants.
For extracurriculars, preconceived notions lead others to believe that Asian Americans excel at playing a musical instrument, are involved less in sports, and perhaps are less sociable and outgoing. Maybe these are true for you, and maybe they aren’t. The main idea is that you should demonstrate to college admission officers that your interests, whatever they may be, are worthwhile and precious to you. Try new things throughout high school and follow your passions, especially if they are unconventional and different. Try out for the football team, or serve the community through service for instance. Even if your interests are more standard and involve math and science, or playing the piano, highlight the activities that demonstrate dedicated involvement and success in them. Activities that not only show your participation, but also indicate talent over others or a leadership role will further bolster your application. Ideally, the organizations and clubs you play a role in should start to shape your character and your aspirations.
To truly communicate who you are to schools relies heavily upon the essays. The essays are, at the core, your voice and your story. Your Common App essay describes to colleges a personal story and an important takeaway that is unique to your life and your individual personality. The writing supplements prompting you to elaborate on your activities should illustrate that your involvement benefits you and allows you to grow through the experiences you gain. The school and program related writing supplements, such as “What aspects of (School)’s curriculum or community attract you?” serve the purpose of conveying your interests to the school and how you plan to use the school’s programs to achieve success. Overall, whether the prompts require you to discuss your personal experiences or your academic goals, they ultimately want to get a better idea of who you are. With your essays, don’t be afraid to take a risk and write about something unorthodox. It’s important for your genuine personality to shine through and demonstrate that you are more than simply another Asian American student.
With a strong application that highlights your well-rounded unique qualities and skills, you can “break the mold” and highlight that you and your passions go beyond the stereotypes. However, the most important thing to keep in mind is that you must follow your passions and interests. Despite what others like parents or friends may suggest, if you are genuinely interested in history, study history! If you want to pursue art, go for it! If engineering is your forte, focus on that! While the core ideas throughout this post essentially apply to any student applying to college, I believe Asian Americans must be particularly mindful in order to show colleges the ways in which they are distinctively extraordinary.
This blog is written by Judy, who is a content creator at Mascot. Judy studies Biology at Dartmouth College.
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