<p>Hello to all,
I am from Spain and I am tired of all racism in this country. When I have to fill an application, I don’t even know what to put because I guess according to USA spanish people speak Spanish, so you are not classified for white, but for Hispanic. Well, Hispanic are people from Mexico and south America. I am tired of all those names like: white skin, fair skin, olive skin, brown skin, black skin. I never know what is to be racist until I came to this country!!!</p>
<p>I’m afraid this thread is not about rants, discussions of racism in America, how people think things ‘should’ be, etc., but rather it deals with the facts about Hispanic students and college admissions. Reading the first post of this thread would inform you that:</p>
<ol>
<li>Hispanic is an ethnicity, not a race. Hispanics can be of any race(s).</li>
<li>Stating your ethnicity and/or race is completely optional on college applications.</li>
</ol>
<p>p.s. for rants, etc., please see this popular thread (on it’s 8th version):</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/927219-race-college-admission-faq-discussion-8-a.html?highlight=race[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/927219-race-college-admission-faq-discussion-8-a.html?highlight=race</a></p>
<p>I am coming late to this discussion, but I am a Spaniard who self identifies both as Hispanic and white, there is no conflict with this because both are acurate.</p>
<p>My own children are half Hispanic and self identify both as Hispanic, white and Asian (my husband is South Asian). They both speak Spanish, not as their native language but as a heritage language. They both have to work at it since our houselhold is not 100% Spanish speaking.</p>
<p>One question I have is how much weight if any at all does their public school racial Id have in College admissions? I left their racial classification Id blank when they were enrolled because the school system did not accept checking multiple categories. I later realized that somebody in the school filled it. The result is that my oldest has been classified as Hispanic whereas my youngest is White… yet they both have the same genetic/cultural background!</p>
<p>Hi IQM and welcome to CC!</p>
<p>The school designation comes into play for NHRP because HS GCs need to verify that the student is Hispanic. However, because there has been so much confusion about identifying as Hispanic, even if the student is a sr in HS, I think you should be able to go in, explain the situation and make sure your child is currently identified correctly.</p>
<p>In general, colleges do not check what ethnicity & race are marked on the application with what has been designated on their school records. However, IMO it is always beneficial to mark Hispanic for school, tests, etc. because often lists are generated and those who mark Hispanic will receive information about special fly-ins, scholarships, etc.</p>
<p>
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<p>Our school system only permitted one designation up until this year when they switched to the 2 question system that permits marking Hispanic and any race(s). From day one, I designated my kids as Hispanic, even though they are of mixed ethnicity and race. However, this year with the change to the new, better system, my D2 was designated as non-Hispanic white. I wonder if they even looked at the existing records or just defaulted everyone to that category :rolleyes:?!</p>
<p>Thanks, entomom, for your reply. I guess I will have to go and have my youngest’s designation changed. While my oldest is a High School Freshman, my youngest has just started 1st grade, so we have a long way to go til we get to College Admission time with her. Still, the sooner the better!</p>
<p>It just really irked me that there was no option to choose all relevant categories, just the one box fits all option. Multiracial/cultural kids can’t be pegged into one tiny little box, shouldn’t they know that?</p>
<p>I was born in Spain and resided there for 5 years. My parents, however, are not from Spain (they met there and lived there for about 15 years). My father is from France and my mother is from Russian descent. Would I be considered to be Hispanic?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>mbmbn,</p>
<p>See this (ignore the Asian part, the rest is similar to your situation), particularly post #3:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/945724-no-hispanic-blood-still-considered-hispanic.html?highlight=asian[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/945724-no-hispanic-blood-still-considered-hispanic.html?highlight=asian</a></p>
<p>I am very new to CC so I’m still not sure if I am posting correctly. I was encouraged to join because of my oldest son, a homeschooled junior, who is 1/2 Puerto Rican. We (his parents) are white and middle class, and he is not in any way culturally Hispanic. He would more closely identify with Asians because of his interests (math, physics, chess, music). He does self identify as Puerto Rican and White but not Hispanic.</p>
<p>How does one “prove” they are 1/2 Puerto Rican? He does not look white so schools will know he’s non-white but for a number of reasons, we don’t want to make an issue out of his ethnicity; yet, he is a top notch student (2320 SAT, national awards in several areas, tons of ECs, lots of college classes, NMF most likely, AP scholar, etc.) and he’s definitely interested in Ivy League schools and other selective schools.</p>
<p>Should I encourage him to identify as Hispanic on applcations and scholarships? That just seems weird to him. </p>
<p>Thanks for the help!!!</p>
<p>I just wanted to clarify because I realize my post sounded negative towards the word “Hispanic”. 
I didn’t mean that at all. We live in Southern California and when we think of Hispanic, it’s almost always in the context of someone from Mexico and that is one thing that Puerto Rican isn’t, at least in my son’s case. (He is a mix of African, Native Indian and Spain Spanish) I do apologize if my original post sounded offensive.</p>
<p>Hi and welcome to CC and the Hispanic Students subforum!</p>
<p>Please go to post #1 of this thread to read about how ethnicity (Hispanic) and race (white, Asian, AA, NA, PI) are determined for college admissions purposes. Some of the major concepts you will read about are:</p>
<ol>
<li> You are Hispanic if you self-identify as Hispanic.</li>
<li> The term Hispanic covers a wide range of countries of origin; while M-As may be the predominant Hispanic group in CA, the definition is much broader.</li>
<li> Hispanics can and are of any race(s).</li>
<li> While there are no % limits for race or ethnicity for college admissions, there may be thresholds for scholarship and other programs (eg. 1/4 for NHRP).</li>
</ol>
<p>Within Hispanic applicants, see this thread for a discussion of what other factors are involved:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/931488-ivy-league-admissions-nhrps.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/931488-ivy-league-admissions-nhrps.html</a></p>
<p>I had an interesting “conversation” via e-mail with the Hispanic Scholarship Fund team. In a nutshell, if my son can convey how his Hispanic heritage has influenced his short term and long term goals, he’s considered Hispanic to them and can apply for scholarships; if he is unable to articulate how his Puerto Rican heritage has influenced his goals, he is not considered Hispanic and cannot apply for scholarships through them.</p>
<p>Now I have to wonder if colleges will think the same thing. If my son isn’t gushing forth with Puerto Rican pride, should he just not bother to mention his ethnicity? I don’t mean to be sarchastic at all; it’s simply that my son is only 16 (soon to be 17) and he has a lifetime to unpeel the layers of what it means to be 1/2 Puerto Rican. We’re discussing it more but he doesn’t know how he feels about it…</p>
<p>As mentioned in the thread linked to in post #70, identification with, commitment to, participation in, etc. the Hispanic community is one of the factors that is likely to be considered by schools. My thoughts are:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>In general, schools would not consider this factor as strongly as Hispanic scholarships, because schools are taking many more things into consideration that a scholarship program aimed towards supporting Hispanic youth does.</p></li>
<li><p>Schools will vary in how much this will be weighted, partially based on how strong the Hispanic pool is. For instance, it may matter more for Yale than for Grinnell.</p></li>
<li><p>It will be considered in relation to the rest of the candidates accomplishments and qualities. So a stronger candidate may not have to demonstrate as much affiliation with their Hispanic background as a weaker candidate.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Just my thoughts, I’m not an AO. I think you may be over thinking this a little, the admissions process is way too complex to try and figure out the impacts of a single part will play. As I see it, he marks the box because he is Hispanic and has some degree of Hispanic identity. Beyond that he has great stats and lots of other things going for him and each school will evaluate all of these factors depending on what their values/goals are for putting together a class. </p>
<p>As far as age, they’re all young and are only a fraction of what they will develop to be. But what else can a college or scholarship program do, but look at where they are now and try to see what their potential is for the future? I don’t think ethnic identity is that much different from academic development, social conscience, or many other factors which develop earlier in some and later in others.</p>
<p>Perhaps I am reading too much into it and you’re right, admissions is a complex entity. Still, if there are scholarships out there, my son needs to wrestle through his self identity and come to some conclusion about how he views himself in relation to others and the world, no doubt easier in some families than in others.</p>
<p>Hello everyone! I realize that having an under-represented ethnicity helps in university admissions. I was born in Argentina and only immigrated to Canada by 10, and have Chinese parents. Would I have an edge over, say, a normal ethnicity Asian? Do the adcom look at where you were born, or where you live, or even the ethnicity of parents?</p>
<p>All of the things you list are important, but if you are applying as an Intl. applicant, you won’t be considered as a URM.</p>
<p>Thanks! This answers my question whether my daughter (1/2 Hispanic) should apply as a Hispanic student.</p>
<p>Glad this was of help! Please be sure to read the Resources sticky thread as it has lots of great information about diversity weekends, summer programs, scholarships, etc. for Hispanic students. Best of luck to you and your D and please feel free to participate on this forum and ask any questions you may have, there are many very experienced and helpful members here.</p>
<p>Hey, I want to know what you all think I should put as my race/ethnicity?</p>
<p>I’ve always considered myself white, but my older brother puts down Hispanic white on official forms because our mother’s family was Spanish (but she was born in East L.A.). He doesn’t speak Spanish, but I actually do. I know a lot about Spanish history/culture, and I’ve worked hard to not become a pocha like my brother.</p>
<p>At the same time, it seems to me like certain people will not consider me Hispanic. I have Spanish features, black eyes, etc., but I’m very white and my father is French/English/Irish/Welsh. On the other hand, though, I feel like my ability with the Spanish language and time spent living in a Latin country (Colombia) have disadvantaged me (“go back to Mexico!” comments, my father’s racist 3rd wife), been a source of pride (being exposed to Latin/Spanish literature, music, people) and caused me identify more with Hispanics than I often do with whites. </p>
<p>Any thoughts? I don’t want to “take advantage” of the system, but I don’t think in terms of ethnicity that I’m completely white.</p>
<p>Hi nygirl and welcome to the Hispanic Students forum!</p>
<p>I urge you to read the first post of this thread, it discusses the basis for the definition of Hispanic as used for college admissions. A few of the important facts are:</p>
<ol>
<li>Race and ethnicity are two separate entities. Hispanic is an ethnicity, and Hispanics can be of any race(s).</li>
<li>Facial features, skin color, last name, etc. do not matter in determining Hispanic ethnicity.</li>
<li>As defined in the US Census definition, which is what is used for college admissions, you are Hispanic if you consider yourself Hispanic.</li>
</ol>
<p>The CA will ask you if you are Hispanic, if you say yes, it will ask for background country, and lists Spain among others. The next question is what race(s) you are, you would mark white. </p>
<p>Some scholarship programs have different definitions of Hispanic and some may require a student to be half or a quarter Hispanic to qualify.</p>
<p>Also, not all Hispanic students are considered the same, see this thread for some discussion:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/931488-ivy-league-admissions-nhrps.html?highlight=ivy[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/hispanic-students/931488-ivy-league-admissions-nhrps.html?highlight=ivy</a></p>
<p>My great-grandparents moved to Argentina at the beginning of the holacuast to avoid persecution. My grandpa was born in argentina and lived there for the first 12 years of his life until he moved to the states. Today I have a good amount of relatives who are both from and live in Argentina. The rest of my family is from Europe. I am wondering if I qualify as Hispanic, help is greatly appreciated.</p>