Should Chinese Ivy Applicant Skip Ethnicity Question?

Sally_Rubenstone · 05-14-2009, 09:10 AM

Question: I’m Chinese but my name doesn’t make it totally obvious. (My last name is Lee. I don’t want to write my real first name here, but it’s a common American name and similar to “Frank.” ) So my full name, sort of like “Frank Lee,” could really be many ethnicities. I’ve heard that there [...]

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Hunt · 05-14-2009, 09:22 AM

If your last name is Lee, and you leave it blank, adcoms will probably assume you are Chinese (especially if you are a math-loving, high-scoring, tennis-playing violinist). Well, I guess if you are from the south and your name is Robert E. Lee, they may not think so.
But why play games?

light10491 · 05-20-2009, 08:23 PM

Aren't there some people of Caucasian descent who have the last name Lee?

Hunt · 05-21-2009, 01:00 PM

Sure there are, but if you leave ethnicity blank and your name is Lee, the first thing an adcom will think is that you're probably Asian. They might even be curious about it, and look to see if you're on the Dragon Boat team, etc.

casual · 05-22-2009, 02:47 PM

I would never think that someone with the last name "Lee" is Asian. Li, yes. Lee, no. That's a very common white name.

etceterae · 05-26-2009, 09:59 PM

Bahaha. Do you think it'd work with a chick with the last name Ren? I'm Chinese too, but Ren is a really uncommon Chinese last name and I only know two or three people that have it. It does sound Japanese though.

light10491 · 05-30-2009, 01:01 AM

People will know Ren is a Chinese last name. They'll guess.

Lee is a common Asian last name. When Koreans and those who immigrate from Hong Kong (Taiwan and Singapore too maybe but I'm not sure), their last name is romanized as Lee. Those who immigrate from the Chinese mainland have the Chinese last name Li because China follows "pinyin" romanization.

chocobok · 06-21-2009, 01:38 AM

I have a white last name (I'm half white, half Chinese), and was thinking about either declining to identify or marking "White." (don't get me wrong, I'm proud of my Asian heritage, but it will probably hurt me in admissions). Plus, my mom changed her first name to a completely American name. But the adcoms will know once they see where my mom went to college (China) and her country of birth. So it's pretty pointless skip the ethnicity question, because they'll figure it out anyways?

toadstool · 06-24-2009, 06:23 AM

"other" is helpful, particularly when it encourages the addcom to go back and read your application again, looking for clues. Be sure that the clues that you sprinkle about are interesting, and make you "the person i would want to go an a long sailing trip with": personable, not boring.

upper · 06-25-2009, 12:27 AM

they don't allow asians in ivy league? wow.

Moon&Star · 06-26-2009, 02:34 PM

*sigh* I guess it will be harder for people like me (last name is dead on: Wang). =/

danjinc · 06-27-2009, 01:41 PM

Yeah I considered this when I applied this year. Just put down asian, honestly, if you leave it blank they won't care whether you're white but unfortunately have an asian-sounding last name, they'll just assume you're asian. And they might question why you declined to put your race--they might think you're ashamed of being asian (less likely) or trying to game the application (most likely).

fuzzyfirebunny · 06-28-2009, 02:25 PM

LOL @ hunts first post

Yeah, if you're Asian and your parents were born in/went to school in China (which a lot of them did...) its kind of a giveaway to the fact that you're Chinese. Additionally, "Lee" seems to jump out at me like a Chinese name so... :/

soccersamdude11 · 07-01-2009, 07:45 PM

If you leave it blank they assume you are the most competitive race which is usually asain. Fail gg thx

polymorphism · 07-05-2009, 10:52 AM

So what's better to put, white or asian? Does it really matter? This question has be vexing my for long enough.