Question about race

[Simiam]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

This question can be confusing if you don't understand the purpose behind it. They are trying to find out which applicants are coming from under served populations. They want to train these students to fulfill their mission of serving the population as a whole and not just certain parts of it. They need people that come from the under served populations because they are the ones who will be more likely to return to those areas.

I mean Egypt is in Africa, so he might be able to label African-American. (Depending on what people consider the definition of African American is. )The problem arises in the fact that the real question is: Are you black, because blacks are an Under represented minority?


Basically the question of ethnic labeling can be confusing to some, but in the general sense it works. It is just how the system is attempting to gain representation in certain under served communities. I think it is a good thing, but it can be abused at times, just like everything else. If you are unsure what to label yourself as in an honest manner the best thing you can do is either call the school or just put "other"

 

[somethinpositiv]

If you were born and raised in Africa, you are African and you are American, therefore you are an "American African", not 'black' as in "African-American".

I have a friend who was born and raised in Kenya, therefore she is an "American African", yet she is ethnically Indian. She is certainly not "African-American".

I also have friends who are Nigerian, but they consider themselves "African" rather than "African-American", even though they are American citizens.

I also know a kid who applied to my school as "African-American", but is Caucasian from South Africa. That person is not 'black', is not "African-American". They are an "American African". Is an Egyptian person from Egypt any more an "African-American" than the Caucasian from South Africa?

Let's be real y'all. "African-American" means 'black', in the American sense.
"African-Americans" are the descendants of captive Africans who survived the slavery era within the boundaries of the present United States.
"American African" means you are American but born and raised in Africa.

 

[enfuego]

I only read the first couple of posts in this thread, but this is why I hate the new PC "African-American" term that has replaced "black." That assumes that (1) all black people are originally from Africa and (2) all Africans are black. People originally from countries not in Africa are black and people from Africa can be of different races other than black. It's a terrible term. And now you have people like the OP who legitimately are African-American, and they have to worry about possibly misleading the adcoms because their skin color doesn't match up to what American society dictates "African-American" to be.

 

[DuffMan01]

My friend was having this problem. Her biological father is black. Her mom is white. And she and her sister are both fair skinned, blond girls, but with black ...curves. Genetics is a little strange sometimes. She doesnt know whether she'd put african american or caucasian in her applications. Cuz if she puts african america, the interviewers are definitely going to question her race. We told her to just bring her birth certificate and other paperwork.

hahah that sounds a little to extreme...Just put African American, and I am pretty sure the interviewer wont question anything...well most of them wont. "It isnt right" But if they do question, juss let her say I am half white and black...easy as that 😀

 

[Andre3k]

I think the assumption being made by admissions committees is that being Black (or any other URM) correlates with having a lower socioeconomic status and less opportunities. Admissions committees assume that because someone is black they have more obstacles to overcome in order to achieve success. While I really don't think that this assumption is true for every single black person, i do feel like it is safe to assume that black people in general have more to overcome in order to make it in to professional schools like dental school than white people do in general. I would be willing to assume that in general black people encounter more obstacles such as racism and that the quality of education received by black people is not as good as that received by white people in general. I stress in general because there are many exceptions to these assumptions. But if you just step back and look at what the situation is for people as a whole I think these assumptions hold true. (There should be data somewhere to back this and i will look for it)

I believe this is how admissions committees think. No matter what you do in this country you cant make everybody happy. No matter what everybody is not going to be treated fairly. What you can do is make sure that the majority of people get a fair shot. And I feel that giving special consideration to black people (or any other URM) is assuring that majority of black people are getting a fair shot. Sure there will be black people getting in professional school with lower stats (DAT,GPA) even though they have come from rich families and have had the best education. But think of all the URMs from low income families with less opportunities that are actually being helped by this.

With that in mind you should only put African American on your application if you feel like you deserve the special consideration that comes with it. 👍