<p>Although the cake analogy is correct, for schools like Harvard, where the vast majority of people ARE “moist and delicious” cake, URM status really does help a lot. I know non-hooked Asian American or White applicants who got rejected from all the Ivies and settled for schools like UChicago, who, had they been a URM, would have probably been accepted to HYPSM or even gotten a likely letter. I personally knew a rich white girl, who was really competitive, felt she was entitled to be the smartest at the school, but really wasn’t at all on par with the top students. Her wealthy .001% parents got her registered as a Native American even though she’s only 1/32 Native and not all disadvantaged. She got into every school she applied (HYPSM) to and even a likely from Yale. Guess how unfair that felt when only 1 person that year other than her got into HYPSM (and only one). But that does highlight how much URM, especially Native American at least, can help.</p>
<p>I don’t hate affirmative action and I think it is a necessary system. But I don’t want to downplay its benefits too for the sake of those rejected for URMs. But, don’t let my opinion change yours. You can judge for yourself the benefits of URM status by looking at previous acceptance threads.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1112322-official-harvard-university-2015-decisions-thread-3.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/harvard-university/1112322-official-harvard-university-2015-decisions-thread-3.html</a></p>