You’ve already heard what the potential consequences are: Denial, Blacklisting, Expulsion, Exposure… People questioning your morals, values, and character forever.
Now, consider this-- The incredibly offensive myth of the “lesser”/low achieving black person who “got into Harvard” is just that; A myth. Every single person who gets into Harvard/Yale/Princeton/Brown/Cornell/Columbia/Dartmouth/UPenn/Stanford/MIT/Michigan/Amherst/Duke/Williams/Virginia/University of Chicago/Rice/<insert “prestigious”="" university="" of="" choice=""> is not a 4.0+, 1500+/36 who can attest to curing cancer or visiting the international space station to conduct alien experiments. Just like every single other college or university in this country, a range of academic results, talents and desirable traits, relative to the perspective of the inviting institution, are considered and admitted. Your GPA and standardized test scores are only two of MANY data points considered.
“Friends” and “Competitors” are rarely in a position to fairly, or even realistically assess the qualifications of another applicant. IF it’s even true that your “black friend” got into Harvard with whatever cherry-picked “stats” that you’ve posted, then obviously Harvard valued something about that student’s profile that stood apart from thousands of other applicants. Instead of cherry-picking the attributes that would have clearly posed as a challenge for their admission, perhaps ask your friend about what did get them in. I can absolutely promise you that your friend didn’t get into Harvard using the mythological black trump card (I feel safe in speaking for every American black person when I laugh hysterically at the notion).
When you want to walk a lifetime in an American black person’s shoes, live with the enduring legacy of slavery, Jim Crow, and contemporary social/economic/educational/justice inequities and microagressions, then go right ahead and compromise your character. I doubt it’s a proposition that you’d want to live with, and I can promise you that you won’t seek what you’re finding. And, you are not likely to get into Harvard, or any other super-selective school. But, you would get a lesson that you’d never be able to forget; What it means to be black in America.
OR, you can be truthful (rather than attempting to co-opt and exploit another culture), not compromise your character, and do what my own son did. He did his very best in school, in the most challenging courses, and went above and beyond in “gifted” program requirements. He followed his passions. He rolled up his sleeves and got engaged with his community. He is bright and engaging, and professionals in his acquaintance were eager to give heart-felt recommendations. He’s multi-talented, and his passions are revealed through those talents. He worked hard on his essays that truly reflect who he is and his strength in writing (no sob stories, no dire situations, no excuses, no seen-it-a-million-times comeback/rise from the ashes story, no sports, and he didn’t save anyone from any burning buildings, and he never mentioned race or ethnicity), and his resume (that reveals more than his application did), and his search for “fit” (he considered things that mattered, not someone else’s yardstick for prestige). He didn’t pretend to be anyone, or anything that he wasn’t. He didn’t have to meet any imaginary benchmarks for perfection. He didn’t have to pretend. He didn’t have to lie. He got outstanding results in both the super-selectives and State flagships. How? Why? Because he found the universities that spoke his language, and they recognized a kindred spirit, not just someone who achieved high (like the tens of thousands of their high achieving peers), so they feel like they’re owed a spot in whatever colleges are on the “Top X” list as their reward.
Oh, and he’s actually black.