<p>Hello and welcome to CC and the Hispanic Students forum!</p>
<p>Yes, this is a FAQ and the first page of the sticky thread about the definition of Hispanic will help, as well looking at a few threads. In a nutshell:</p>
<p>Hispanic ethnicity is separate from race and Hispanics can be of any race(s). So, your being Hispanic and white is not a contradiction. </p>
<p>Appearance or being discriminated against is not a factor in whether or not you can or should identify as Hispanic. The most important factor is honesty, whether or not you identify with your Hispanic background.</p>
<p>Marking Hispanic for college admissions will not raise red flags, particularly if you support your Hispanic identity in other parts of your application: academics, clubs, volunteering, essays, etc., which it sounds like you will.</p>
<p>As far as how much it will help give you a boost in admissions, that depends on many factors including your accomplishments, the individual school, and other demographic and personal factors, see this thread for some of my thoughts:</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 think the jury is still out on Spaniards and college admissions. While they definitely are Hispanic (the CA lists Spain under Hispanic background), they would IMO probably be the least ‘desired’ of Hispanic groups since they are likely the least underrepresented in college. However, perhaps after MA and PR, Hispanics of all other backgrounds are considered similarly, I’m just not sure because the numbers are low and there’s no hard data.</p>