Would I have gotten in if I were not Black?

Colleges & Universities Yale University
1

<p>So I was on another thread and someone asserted that I only got into Yale because I was black, so I mulled it over and decided to just ask what others thought. Be honest.</p>

<p>Rank:13/476
GPA: 3.89 UW 5.54 W
SAT: didn’t submit
ACT: 34 (36 R, 35 M, 32 E, 31 S)
SAT 2:didn’t send in </p>

<p>Forgot about Aps: English Lang, Comp Sci, Chemistry, US History, Physics B, Calculus AB (couldn’t take BC bc of Stat), Statistics, Biology, Economics, English Lit, Gov
Work Experience</p>

<p>6/1/07-7/25/07 Target (Missouri City, TX) 30 hrs/week
6/7/08-8/22/08 16 hrs/week
Employee Food Ave.
Mitigate customer relations problems
Provide high-quality food service</p>

<p>Activities</p>

<p>9th-11th Independent Science Research
Conducted individual research on atomic physics</p>

<p>10th-12th Forensics Team 30 hrs/week
Member(10th-11th), Team Captain(12th) 25 weeks/year
Participated in Lincoln-Douglass Debate and Extemporaneous Speaking
Instructed novice debaters</p>

<p>9th-12th Trumpet Player</p>

<p>9th -10th High School Football Team 20 hrs/week
Linebacker, Kickoff, and Receiving Team 36 weeks/year
Directed the Defensive formation
(Quit because of wrist surgery)</p>

<p>11th-12th Science Honor Society 6 hrs/week
Member(11th), Parliamentarian(12th) 15 weeks/year
Judged local science fairs
Participated in community service for science related endeavors</p>

<p>Athletic Awards</p>

<p>9th District Runner-Up Football
2nd Place in district
10th District Champions Football
1st Place in district</p>

<p>Musical Awards
9th
Dallas Lone Star Showcase of Music Outstanding in Division Award
University Interscholastic League Concert Sight-Reading Award
10th
San Francisco Musical Showcase Participant
University Interscholastic League Performance Award</p>

<p>Speech & Debate Awards</p>

<p>10th
State Qualifier in Lincoln Douglass Debate
5th Place Team Texas Forensic League State Tournament
1st place University of Texas Longhorn Classic Tournament
1st Place Aldine Debate Tournament
National Forensic League Distinction Honor</p>

<p>11th
State Qualifier in Lincoln Douglass Debate
State Quarterfinalist Extemporaneous Speaking
3rd Place University Interscholastic League District Extemporaneous Speaking
6th Place National Forensic League District Extemporaneous Speaking
National Forensic League Special Distinction Honor</p>

<p>Science Research Awards</p>

<p>9th
Fort Bend Outstanding Achievement in Science Award</p>

<p>10th
Fort Bend Outstanding Achievement in Science Award
Elkins High School Top Chemistry Student Honor</p>

<p>11th
Evaluation of Photon Tunneling Probability by Spatial Variation published by The Society for Amateur Scientists
4th Place American Physics Society-Texas Chapter
Jacobs Engineering Science Research Award
4th Place Science and Engineering Fair of Houston
Fort Bend Outstanding Achievement in Science Award
Elkins High School Top Chemistry Student Honor</p>

<p>Distinctive Research:</p>

<p>9th Quantitative Analysis of Electron Transition in Helium</p>

2

<p>You beat me stats wise. And I’m chinese (and got in)</p>

3

<p>Um, yes. Absolutely.</p>

<p>What college are you in, Dbate? Do I know you?</p>

4

<p>I am in calhoun, and I think I do know you.</p>

5

<p>^lol awkward</p>

6

<p>Yes, you would have gotten in. And that’s one heck of a weighted GPA.</p>

7

<p>Black, white, yellow, or purple, you were a great candidate for admission. As an African-American, you were probably a sure thing; as a non-URM, your probability of acceptance was probably somewhere way above average but meaningfully lower than 100%. Does that mean you “only got into Yale because you were black”? Of course not. Your resume is as good as anyone’s, better than many. Did being black help you seal the deal? Sure.</p>

<p>You don’t have anything to apologize for or to feel insecure about. You are exactly the sort of person who SHOULD be at Yale, and that’s without regard to skin color. But your race is not irrelevant. It means that instead of being a really strong candidate in an elite pool, you were for most purposes practically a unique candidate, if not quite one-in-a-million than one in a darn high number. I don’t know anything about your background, but many African-Americans who assemble your kind of resume have to overcome really significant obstacles to do it, and are many times more impressive as people than the equivalent Jewish or Asian students. And regardless of background your race gives you the power to do some things that you couldn’t do if you weren’t black – essentially, the power to lead by example, to inspire others – while at the same time sticking a heavy burden on your back – essentially, having to be an example whether you want to be or not.</p>

8

<p>Yeah, you would be a very strong candidate even if you were Asian. You probably would have gotten in anyway.</p>

9

<p>If you’re just trying to make the point that you would get into Yale even if you were not a URM, then your point is well made. You’re absolutely amazing in so many ways! If you’re truly, sincerely insecure about this (though I see no reason why you would be), you can create a new CC account, then create a chance thread with these stats but state yourself as Asian in that case, and see what the general population says. Should be funny.</p>

10

<p>Yeah Calhoun!!! <---- Just a pitch.</p>

11

<p>No. 10 char.</p>

12

<p>Probably would have been waitlisted.</p>

13

<p>lolblack:)</p>

14

<p>As a black person, you had a 90%+ chance of getting in. Were you not, maybe about a 50% chance. So my answer is maybe.</p>

15

<p>JHS
Are you Jewish? What do religious beliefs have to do with accomplishments. Can you recognize someone is Jewish by just looking at them? I understand the burdens imposed on people by the way they look and color of their skin whether Asian, Hispanic, African American etc. I do not believe Jewish students have an advantage in their struggles and achievements from any other Caucasian</p>

16

<p>Dbate, the real point is that you should not care. Could you have gotten in? Absolutely. Would you have gotten in? Who knows. Heck, you might not have gotten into Yale, even as a URM, depending on the whims of the adcom on the partciular day he/she reviewed your app.</p>

<p>Whether you are for or against racial affirmative action (I myself am adamantly against it for a multitude of reasons), one thing that should be universally rejected is any misconception of superiority/inferiority of ethnic groups at top schools that racial AA seems to create. Even if you fit the archetypal “oh he got in because he was black” role (you don’t), I would say the same things. There’s nothing more ironic than a racial integration system that leads to racial tensions.</p>

17

<p>You would stand a very good chance.</p>

<p>At the end of the day, you know you’re not there to fill up some “quota” or something; you’re there because you earned it. </p>

<p>It’s impossible to say for sure, but it’s not something that should surprise anyone.</p>

18

<p>As many have said, you would have had a great chance even if you were not African American. Don’t worry about it.</p>

19

<p>Wow T26E4, you’re Chinese? BTW thanks again for the message.</p>

20

<p>I realize in retrospect it was really stupid of me to create this thread.</p>