<p>It definitely hurts. Your chances are at least 30% lower just from overt bias and assuming there’s no self-selection in the pool making Asian Americans with equal qualification as a white person not applying because of the higher bars of admission. In addition to the overt bias, you’re far more likely to be perceived as a mindless grinder with no originality, a test-taking drone if your scores are very good, less well-rounded than a white person with your qualifications would be especially if you are focusing on stem, and at least some adcoms will have an inner feeling that you’re one of THOSE Asians who steal admission and in the future from “deserving” whites. </p>