Collegevine asserts that at competitive colleges, candidates are first compared within demographic groups. How accurate is this? Under such a pretense, Collegevine gave me a 59-65% chance of going to Georgetown, as I am a black male with a 1470 SAT and 3.8 GPA. If I told them I’m Asian, they give me 1-7%. If I “Prefer not to say” my ethnicity, my chances are 38–44%.
TLDR: Do colleges first compare applications within demographic groups? My chances at Georgetown are radically different if I am Black vs Asian.
Virginia Tech stayed at 93-95% despite race.
It’s a very general tool. Don’t look at these percentages as anything more than directional in nature.
Some schools do have a desire to increase campus diversity and some like the UC schools are prohibited from doing so.
It’s generally considered to be a modest advantage to be from a more under represented group in the application process.
However, it’s is 100 percent based on each specific person. You don’t get into Georgetown without having what they want from a holistic and academic perspective.
According to this article: https://www.chronicle.com/article/Harvard-Admissions-Officials/244895, according to the article, if only Academics were considered, 43% of Harvard would be Asian and 0.67% would be Black. When adding demographics, 18% would be Asian and 11% would be Black.
That’s why they look at things with a wider lens than scores only at most schools. Once you are scored as academically capable, it’s all of the other things that matter. Courses. Recommendations. ECs. Leadership. Personal essays. All are huge in the process.
Good luck and don’t worry about things you can’t control. It doesn’t matter in the end.