Ime, no time to “parse out the bio heritage.” Too much in the rest of the app/supp matters more. Some on CC assume hs stats and some good club roles are really the “it” and then they jump to ethnicity and race to include or exclude . Not.
Can I take a minor threadjack to say you adoptive parents are freakin’ awesome? I would hope your kids would benefit from it for admissions even though I realize that might not occur.
@Postmodern, there have been occasional threads that talk adoption, one way or another, and it’s a notable number here. The delight, for me, is how many have discussed their kids for a long time and don’t stop to say, “adopted.” They’re just our kids. 
I think OP has a legit question, in that some comments elsewhere scared her. I just think she needs to put it in the proper perspective, try to gather some real understanding. It’s very early in the game, for her.
Thanks, everyone, for your contributions so far. I haven’t been ignoring you, just processing it all and trying to come up with the right words that will represent my thoughts in ways that won’t be misunderstood. I appreciate the fact that so many of you are sincerely grappling with it, even those who don’t personally face the issue.
I think the dilemma I’m feeling is best worded by fallenchemist (I’m a Tulane alumni, BTW) when he points out the dual nature of ethnicity…shall we define it predominately by genes or by upbringing? Are we free to do so, any way we wish? Are individuals really granted that choice? Is a genetically Asian or African person with a predominately white environmental background inadvertently claiming what is thought of by some as white privilege ? On and on… Of course, this affects all individuals of a minority background, with regards to where their their upbringing/personality falls on the spectrum of what the world expects of that ethnicity. But I think multiracial families formed by international adoption may be the extreme example of how confusing it is to define ethnicity. And then, as bearcatfan mentions, there are the parts of a person influenced the fact of adoption itself. …which can influence how/whether the child wants to claim a heritage that was personally problematic to him/her. Whew! But we did choose this path, and glad of it! It’s just that no parent wants to see their child suffer. Parents in transracial adoption cannot lead the way from personal experience of race in the same way that minority parents of same-race children. That’s why I’m asking questions like…“how will college admissions likely view my child in terms of race?” I’ve never had to grapple with it.
lookingforward… it’s true, our kids ARE our kids! Can’t imagine it any other way! And I don’t ever say my daughter IS adopted… She WAS adopted, and now she’s just our daughter And Thank You for your level-headed responses.
To @allyphoe’s point, a friend’s adopted Asian daughter was invited to attend a number of fly-in events at schools that were trying to increase diversity, and they courted her heavily after admitting her. (She was highly deserving, btw – smart, athletic, personable,) Her mom vetoed one of the schools because “there were too few Asians there”. So if you’re like me, you no doubt can find a bunch of things to worry about with a daughter in HS 
, this probably doesn’t have to be one of them.
Honestly, I kind of forget my kids are anything but mine.
They have both taken after me in many personality traits. Poor kids. 
I dont recall seeing this question on the Common App.
Can someone confirm it?
@PrimeMeridian, The Common App does ask for the place of birth (in the Geographic Section). That doesn’t mean adopted children have to put the original place of birth on their applications. Our extended family includes several members who were adopted. I think the amended birth certificates list the place of birth as the location of the adoptive parents, not the birth parents. If the amended birth certificates listed the town the child was actually born in, it would be easier to track down biological parents. That wouldn’t make closed adoptions very effective.
I would put whatever the birth certificate says. In OP’s case, if it says she was born in China and that worries her, she can leave the demographic section blank. I don’t think colleges are going to assume she’s Asian.
I think that you shouldn’t treat them as adopted Asian kids but just as your kids. Let them develop and create their own goals and expectations. I wouldn’t worry too much about ethnicity.
I get the sense that the challenge many Asian students have is that so much is expected of them by their parents and families and if their efforts don’t get them into the best schools then they have either failed themselves, their families or both. The pressure to be the best pushes many Asian students to apply to only a group of top tier universities where they are competing against many of their own peers. You don’t have to do that. Let them succeed as Americans, not as adopted Chinese students. That doesn’t mean you don’t want the best for them but only that you want WHAT is best for them.
If in a few years your D decides to pursue Physical Therapy, she will have many universities to consider. Some will have guaranteed admissions programs or if she isn’t sure just about any number of universities will have a pre physical therapy or allied health program that can segue into other fields. Good luck and best wishes to you and your family. I think what you’ve done is awesome and can truly appreciate your concern for your child.
“either failed themselves, their families or both”.
Or they assume the system failed them. Better to put the energy into learning what really matters.
Yes, although the adoption was finalized in China, we readopted her in our town and so she has a U.S. birth certificate.
However, we did retain her given Chinese name as a middle name (she only had one given name) so it would be hard to hide that clue to her ethnicity if we wanted to. Her Chinese name is a very unusual one, even in China, and may or may not be recognized immediately as Chinese. (And, of course, people choose all kinds of names for their children nowadays.) But, really, I am uncomfortable going to great lengths to hide her origins, as if it is something to be ashamed of. In the end, it will be her decision.
To me, the most sensible and honest thing would be to put all the necessary information out there in a discrete manner, but not check the race box, as she is an ORM, not a URM. Which is kind of how she unconsciously presents herself to the world…“yes, I was born in China but it’s just a part of who I am.” And hope for the best. And, without trying to morph into my idea of a tiger mom myself (not that we’re total slackers) prod her ever-more-slightly in the direction of her best academic self than I would otherwise think necessary. Just in case.
I think it’s best to let colleges know who she is: adopted Chinese raised in an American family.
@inthegarden: I guess they had a discussion in class recently about ethnicity issues. My D’s advisor shared with me that D identifies herself as “sort of Asian, but not really.” There have been a couple of times when clueless classmates have said things to her like “Well, of course you got an A on that paper… it comes naturally to you, you’re Asian.” This annoyed her greatly, because she works her butt off for those grades.
And I am currently wrangling some with my inner tiger mom, so I know exactly what you mean.
@bearcatfan: I literally forget that mine was adopted, too. When we were last at the MD’s office for her checkup talking about something, I said that it wasn’t surprising to me, because my mother and I also had the same issue, and it is often hereditary. The doctor looked at me and said “Um, but, she was adopted, right?” Oh, right! I forgot. I never think about it, except when we have to apply for a passport… or on her birthday, when I say an extra prayer of thanks to her birthmother for enabling me to be so incredibly blessed.
@cameo43 my daughter was the only white kid on her middle school’s varsity science olympiad team. 1 white kid, 14 asian kids.
More than one team mate told her she was pretty smart for a white kid.
Sheesh. Why can’t these kids just be kids.
Thanks, cameo43. Some of these comments…really! (But you can’t say anything without some out there thinking you’re claiming victimhood) I have actually been surprised, for the most part how few funny looks and comments we have gotten these many years in/around our smallish, provincial town (we’re not from here, BTW.) I do forget most of the time we’re not the average American family. But some of the most blatant statements have come from otherwise progressive, well-educated people, not from this town, that I count as friends. Maybe because they feel free to say it because of our friendship? When our daughter was a highly articulate toddler lots of people were amused, but I got a good bit of the “well, of course she’s smart” comments, and not because we read and talked to her all the time. Meant well, of course, but still… DD IS smart and in the accelerated stream at school but not way up in the gifted range by any means, and really has to work at math. If not for the tutoring of my chemist husband she would likely be a “B” math student. I can only imagine how an Asian child with learning disabilities or average intelligence would struggle with self-esteem for the shame being being “normal” whether or not his/her parents put any pressure. Just being allowed to be oneself is quite a luxury.
bearcatfan, My husband, daughter and I are all lefties, lol!
@inthegarden: As another poster has said on this forum, “College Confidential is the only place where a B grade = BAD.”
@cameo43 I have a masters in chemistry and minored in math and tutored the heck out of one kid and she still got B’s in all math above A2/Trig
Oh noes.
Yes, I have actually told her I’m looking at her effort…that if she works hard, goes the extra half mile on her hardest subjects, learns a lot and makes a “B” average in a subject, that’s OK. And I’m sure that will happen from time to time in high school and would probably be a relief to get her first “B” soon and get it over with. ( It would frustrate me if she made a “B” on something for lack of paying attention, which has almost happened a couple of times.) At a more competitive school she probably would have made "B"s already. Just saying, she’s not a whiz kid. Just your average really good student who likes her couch potato moments! I’ve always been more of an “intrinsic” rewards kind of parent, but it’s also important to be aware of the world they have to fit into, and its’ requirements.
My daughter’s certificate of foreign birth (her Colorado birth certificate) lists her birth place as City, Province, PRC. I’d leave it blank before incorrectly listing her birth place as in the US. She recently replaced her passport and had to list her city of birth. I think it is very important to be very consistent on all documents.
My daughter thought about it for a long time before deciding to list her race on her college applications. It wasn’t to gain an advantage or hide that she’s Chinese, she just doesn’t identify as being Chinese. To her, it is a non-issue and she wants it to remain that way. I don’t think it made any difference in her acceptance as she had a pre-read through the coach and was told she’d be accepted off her stats.
My daughter’s certificate of foreign birth (her Colorado birth certificate) lists her birth place as City, Province, PRC. I’d leave it blank before incorrectly listing her birth place as in the US. She recently replaced her passport and had to list her city of birth. I think it is very important to be very consistent on all documents.
My daughter thought about it for a long time before deciding to list her race on her college applications. It wasn’t to gain an advantage or hide that she’s Chinese, she just doesn’t identify as being Chinese. To her, it is a non-issue and she wants it to remain that way. I don’t think it made any difference in her acceptance as she had a pre-read through the coach and was told she’d be accepted off her stats.